MOSCOW, January 12. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin will decide on which retaliatory measures to take in response to a new US sanctions list only after this list is finalized, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters, commenting on information published in the Kommersant newspaper that the new US sanctions list will include 50 Russian officials and businessmen (300, together with their family members).
Peskov said that "there are many different lists circulating" in newspapers and on the internet, "but all of them turn out to be false," so it is necessary to wait for this list to be submitted by the US Department of State to the Congress. "It is highly probable" that it will take place, because "we heard such announcements from Washington," the Kremlin spokesman said.
"It [the list] is to be analyzed in a most thorough way. The appearance of such a list does not mean a new round of sanctions exchanges yet. It is necessary to study this list, when and where it will be formalized, and then a position will be developed, sure enough," Peskov said, stressing that Russian President Vladimir Putin will make a decision on this issue.
The Kremlin spokesman reiterated that sanctions actions usually prompt retaliatory measures. "The principle of reciprocity remains a cornerstone in this case," Peskov stressed. Answering a question on whether Russia’s response measures will be tit-for-tat, the presidential spokesman stated that "[the measures] that will be taken will corresponds to our interests in the best possible way.".