Russian Ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov spoke with media in response to the latest U.S. threats on Dec. 22 to implement further sanctions against Russia over the Ukraine conflict, saying: “Local strategists cannot calm down even on the eve of Seasonal holidays. The White House is once again trying to demonstrate the notorious desire to inflict strategic defeat on Russia, including in the economic sphere. It is piling up more and more sanctions in futile attempts to put sticks in the wheels of the steady development of the Russian economy and to obstruct our special military operation.
“Moreover, most of the measures announced today by the Treasury target institutions in third countries. One can read an obvious desire to intimidate our partners, push them to cut off mutually beneficial ties with the Russian Federation under the fanfare of geopolitical slogans. The U.S. seems not to understand or does not want to understand that with such reckless actions it is contributing to the fragmentation of the world economy, as well as undermining the status of dollar jurisdiction in the eyes of the Global South, and even of America’s satellites.
“Washington’s sanction fantasies cause additional damage to bilateral relations. Basically, they cross out any possibility of restoring mutually respectful dialogue between the great powers even on the short list of topics where Russia and the United States could still share similar positions.”
