MOSCOW, May 19. /TASS/. Moscow sees no reason yet to expand its list of unfriendly states but is determined to firmly respond to provocations, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told TASS on Wednesday.

"As of now, we don’t see any reason to change the order that the government has issued recently," he said. At the same time, the deputy foreign minister noted that "any provocations against Russia will be met with a balanced, proportionate and strong response."

Ryabkov pointed out that European NATO members could be put on Russia’s list of unfriendly states depending on their behavior. "Everything depends on the behavior of European countries, namely NATO members, who seek to act in a bullish manner," he added.

The senior Russian diplomat stressed that the move to put countries on the list stemmed not from their expulsion of Russian diplomats but from their policies in general.

The list of unfriendly states, approved by the Russian government, was published on May 14. It comprises the United States and the Czech Republic. According to the document, the Czech Republic will be allowed to hire up to 19 Russian nationals and third-country citizens, while the US won’t be able to hire any.