MOSCOW, January 12. /TASS/. Russia is ready to retaliate proportionately in the event that its assets are seized in the West, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.

She made the statement at a news conference when commenting on a US bill that aims to allow seizure of Russian assets.

"I would also like to reiterate that the eventual seizure of our sovereign reserves is fraught with detrimental consequences for the financial and investment domains of the countries that would take this step, contrary to the warnings from sober-minded experts," she said. "The Russian side is not interested in the situation developing this way, but is ready for any options, including those providing for adequate responses to any unfriendly actions."

In further comments on the bill, the diplomat said that "theft has become a hallmark of the Anglo-Saxons." "Stealing government, private and public property has become a hallmark of the Anglo-Saxons. Washington, London have been doing it for decades, but it used to be called differently before - piracy, for example. It later became legal, and now it is piracy of the 21st century, in my opinion," she added.

Pressure on the EU

According to the diplomat, the US is trying to force the EU to make anti-Russian steps.

"The Americans, using such methods as media pressure, are now trying to encourage the European Union, which is home to a significant portion of Russia’s frozen funds, to be the first to take harsh, illegitimate actions, so that the European Union brings upon itself all the imminent negative economic, legal and moral consequences of this step," she said.

"Now we indeed are looking at an attempt by Washington to impose another anti-Russian decision on the European Union in order to cement the EU's isolation from our country," Zakharova stated.

Russian assets

Bloomberg earlier reported, citing a document from the National Security Council, that the administration of US President Joe Biden greenlighted a bill that would allow the confiscation of about $300 billion of Russian money, which have been frozen in the West. These funds are planned to be used for rebuilding Ukraine. Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow would challenge, on an indefinite basis, such steps by the West. According to Peskov, the seizure would entail "very serious legal and judicial costs for those who will make these decisions and who will take advantage of these decisions." Russia will also come up with retaliatory measures, the spokesman said.