MOSCOW — The bitter relations between Moscow and Kiev continued their downward spiral on Thursday, as the Russian government imposed economic sanctions against a broad cross-section of Ukraine’s political and business elite.

The Russian prime minister, Dmitri A. Medvedev, issued a decree freezing the assets of 68 businesses and 322 individuals, with the list reading like a who’s who of the Ukrainian government. The decree specified that those sanctioned would not be able to repatriate any financial holdings in Russia to Ukraine.

The decree said that the step was being taken now to “counter Ukraine’s unfriendly activities toward Russian citizens and entities,” a reference to similar sanctions that Kiev imposed on Russians earlier this summer.

With economic and political relations between the countries crumbling, the impact of the sanctions was likely to be muted, analysts said. In an echo of the Nixon-era “enemies list,” the Ukrainians singled out, especially those running in next year’s elections, generally boasted about being sanctioned.