Russia takes economic hit from new U.S. sanctions
Kremlin spokesman slams U.S. move as illegal and an ‘unfriendly act’
MOSCOW — The ruble weakened and Russian stocks plunged Thursday after new sanctions announced by the Trump administration.
In the world of Russian politics, the spike in East-West tensions could boost President Vladimir Putin’s flagging popularity. But it has also left Russians wondering what that Helsinki meeting was all about.
“This sort of decision by the American side is an absolutely unfriendly act,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. “It can scarcely be associated
in any way with the constructive — not easy, but constructive — atmosphere at the most recent meeting of the two presidents.”
Peskov slammed the new sanctions as illegal and repeated that Russia had nothing to do with the poisoning of a former Russian spy in England in March — the episode that sparked the measures announced Wednesday. He said it was too early to talk about Russian countermeasures because the full scope of the U.S. sanctions was not yet known.
But investors did not wait for details, driving the Russian ruble to a two-year low against the dollar and sending shares in Russian companies plummeting on the stock market. One of the hardest hit was Aeroflot, the Russian national airline, which could lose its ability to fly to the United States as a possible consequence
of the new sanctions.
Aeroflot currently has flights to New York, Washington, Miami and Los Angeles.
The State Department’s surprise announcement of the new sanctions jolted Moscow, where some politicians and analysts had
been hopeful that Putin’s meeting with President Donald Trump in Helsinki in July would stabilize U.S.-Russia relations. A 1991 U.S. law, however, mandates sanctions once the president makes a determination that a country is responsible for a chemical or biological weapons attack.
The first round of the new sanctions, scheduled to take effect Aug. 22, will include a broad ban on technology exports to Russia. Unless Russia agrees within 90 days to stop all use of chemical weapons and permit inspections to confirm their elimination, the law requires the U.S. to choose from a range of additional measures, including withdrawal of U.S. support for international loans and U.S. bank loans, prohibition of landing rights for Russian airlines and suspension of diplomatic relations.