MOSCOW, March 2. /TASS/. Russia will scrutinize the hostile actions of other countries when choosing a response to their sanctions, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Wednesday.
"The response to these unfriendly…hostile actions, of course, must be analyzed. No one is going to shoot themselves in the foot to spite someone else. We will do what we need to do, what’s advantageous for us, and [we will do it] with a sound mind," the Kremlin spokesman assured.
When asked if there are plans to expand the list of unfriendly countries, which officially includes only the United States and the Czech Republic, Peskov noted that now the actions of many states indicate their hostility towards Russia.
"Judging by the measures that many countries are taking against us, they are now all de facto unfriendly. Whether they are on the list or not. In this case, the list is secondary," he pointed out.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said in a televised address on February 24 that in response to a request by the heads of the Donbass republics he had made a decision to carry out a special military operation. The Russian leader stressed that Moscow had no plans of occupying Ukrainian territories.
After that the US, the EU, the UK and a number of other states announced that they would impose sanctions against Russian legal entities and individuals.