Kremlin ‘concerned’ that US may expand sanctions on Russia

A spokesman for Russian President Vladimir Putin said Monday that the Kremlin is “concerned” about the possibility of expanded U.S. sanctions on Russia.

“We don’t want to be in a situation where our bilateral relations, which are already in a rather pitiful state, could face even bigger and possibly unbearable risks and dangers,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters, according to Bloomberg.

“We have concerns about sanctions, but we don’t know what they will be, since it’s all still discussions that aren’t based on any official information,” he added.

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The Trump administration sent a list to Congress in late October of Russian-connected figures and companies it planned to use in determining new sanctions — sanctions meant as a rebuke for Russia’s actions in eastern Europe and during the 2016 presidential election.

The administration indicated it would target its actions at those in the U.S. and elsewhere who do “significant” business with Russian-linked entities, with potential sanctions coming as early as Jan. 29 for those companies that have continued to do business with Russian entities.

Putin on Monday called for Russian businesses to be allowed to bring money back into the country without facing a certain tax, and has also approved a special bonds program to encourage money to come back into the country as Washington pursues tougher sanctions.