The Kremlin said Russia would keep reducing its investment in US government bonds and drastically cut its payments in dollars in response to new sanctions placed on Moscow by Washington.

Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said on state TV at the weekend that the new sanctions to be imposed by the US by the end of August over Russia's alleged involvement in the use of a nerve agent against a former spy and his daughter in Britain would restrict purchases of Russian government bonds, describing the impact as "unpleasant, but not fatal."

In response, "we have lowered to the minimum level and will further decrease our investment in US securities," Siluanov said only days after Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev warned any US move to curb the activities of Russian banks would be seen "as a declaration of economic war."

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No threat to Mc Donald's

The finance minister added that Russia would settle more bills in rubles and other currencies such as the euro, rather than in dollars, saying that this would negatively impact US investors.

He emphasized, though, that the Kremlin was not planning any limitations such as shutting down McDonald's or other US companies active in Russia, something frequently demanded by some lawmakers.

"Our citizens work in these companies, these firms pay taxes into our budget," Siluanov said.

While admitting that US sanctions would hurt the ruble and increase inflation, the minister said there were no plans to ban the use of the greenback in the country.

US sanctions and who they target Iran US sanctions on Iran target Tehran's trade in gold and precious metals, block the sales of passenger jets and restrict Iran's purchase of US dollars, among other punitive measures. The US has also blocked Iran's key oil sales in a further tranche of sanctions, which came into force in November 2018.

US sanctions and who they target North Korea Impoverished North Korea is under a UN-backed embargo, but Washington also maintains an extensive regime of sanctions of its own. For example, the US strictly bans exporting weapons to the pariah state. Washington also uses its global clout to penalize non-US banks and companies that do business with Pyongyang.

US sanctions and who they target Syria Washington trade restrictions prevent the regime of President Bashar Assad from exporting Syrian oil to the US. All property and assets of the Syrian government in the US have been frozen. Americans, wherever in the world they might be, are banned from "new investment" in the war-torn country, according to the US Treasury.

US sanctions and who they target Russia The US blacklisted scores of high-ranking Russian officials and businessmen after the 2014 Crimea crisis, stopping them from traveling to the US and freezing their assets. The comprehensive sanctions list includes goods from the Russian-annexed region, such as wine. New sanctions imposed in the aftermath of the Skripal poisoning in March 2018 target sensitive national security and defense goods.

US sanctions and who they target Cuba American tourists began flocking to Cuba immediately after the Obama administration initiated a thaw in relations in 2016. Under Donald Trump, however, the White House reimposed travel restrictions for US citizens, making it much harder for Americans to travel to the island. At least one Obama-era concession is still in place, however: it is still legal to bring Cuban cigars and rum to the US. Author: Darko Janjevic



hg/aos (AFP, Reuters, dpa)