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Moscow (AFP)

Russia's ruble hit Thursday its lowest level against the dollar for more than two years, a day after the latest round of punitive US sanctions took effect.

At around 1300 GMT, the ruble's value dropped to 69 against the dollar for the first time since April 2016, when the shocks from the first Western sanctions over Russia's actions in Ukraine were still being felt.

US sanctions came into force on Wednesday over Moscow's alleged role in the poisoning of former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter with the nerve agent Novichok in the British city of Salisbury.

The latest sanctions target US exports to Russia that could be worth millions of dollars.

The ruble's steep fall prompted the central bank to issue a statement saying it had decided not to buy foreign currency from Thursday to the end of next month.

Such daily operations are carried out to balance out the effects of the fluctuating oil price but have a negative effect on the ruble's value.

"This decision was taken with the aim of increasing the predictability of the actions of the monetary authorities and reducing the volatility of financial markets," the bank's statement said.

The bank's statement caused the ruble to bounce back quickly.

The currency has also been under pressure in recent weeks from the decline in emerging currencies caused by the Turkish financial crisis.

The latest US sanctions were announced in early August, causing Russian stock markets to drop dramatically.

They concern exports of certain technology with potential military use to Russia. But they could be followed by much more painful measures for Russians.

The second round of sanctions described by a senior US State Department official as "draconian" could seriously crack down on trade and prevent Russian state carrier airline Aeroflot from flying to the US, although these could still be softened.

The second round of sanctions will be imposed unless Russia complies with conditions concerning chemical weapons that deputy foreign minister Sergei Ryabkov described Thursday as deliberately impossible to fulfil.

"These conditions are knowingly and premeditatedly formulated in such a way that it is impossible to fulfil them. And everyone understands this very well," Ryabkov said in comments reported by Interfax news agency.

Ryabkov said Russia will seek ways to avoid using the US dollar in payments.

"The moment has come to move from words to actions and get rid of the dollar as a means of mutual settlements and seek other schemes," Ryabkov said.

"Thank God, this is happening and we will step up such work."

© 2018 AFP