PUTIN’s government has announced it is making preparations for a major response to the US after Trump ordered fresh sanctions against Russia, as tensions between the two world powers continues to dramatically deteriorate.
Earlier this month the US announced it had added 38 Russian entrepreneurs, senior officials and companies to its sanctions list as part of an effort to crack down on the country’s “malign activity” taking place across the globe.
Now the Kremlin has confirmed it is working on retaliatory measures to hit back at the Trump administration.
Russia’s Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov confirmed the news.
He said: “I will not announce anything, we are working on that.”
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Russia are planning a major response to fresh US sanctions
A firm response to the sanctions from Putin was already expected and a bill outlining potential reactionary measures was presented to the Russian parliament earlier this week.
It considered measures such as banning imports of US agricultural, alcoholic, and tobacco products as well as medical drugs.
However, Mr Sokolov’s announcement is a direct indication Putin’s government are actively considering how to react.
Relations between Washington DC and Moscow have nosedived since the poisoning of ex-Russian spy Sergei Skripal on UK soil.
However, diplomatic relations have deteriorated further since then after the US, UK and France launched airstrikes on Syrian military bases in the early hours of Saturday morning.
Military action was taken against the Barzah Research and Development Centre outside Damascus with 76 missiles and what the US military described as the Him Shinshar Chemical Weapons Complex outside the city of Homs.
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Russia’s Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov confirmed retaliatory measures were being considered.
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It is unclear how Russia will respond the US airstrikes in Syria
Russia sent a grave warning to the US ahead of the military intervention and warned Trump not to go ahead with the attacks.
Putin is yet to announce how he will respond to the airstrikes going ahead.
