Russia vows ‘reprisals’ over US sanctions

Russia has pledged “adequate reprisals” over US sanctions and accused Washington of trying to destroy ties by making “unfounded” allegations of interference in the US election. Washington announced a series of measures against Russia, including tough sanctions on Russia’s top two intelligence agencies, the expulsion of 35 diplomats and a decision to shut down two Russian compounds in the US. Accusations of #Russia interfering with #US presidential elections are absolutely groundless — Russian Embassy in USA 🇷🇺 December 30, 2016 “We categorically reject the unfounded assertions and accusations made about Russia,” Peskov said, according to the Ria Novosti news agency. Richard Weitz, a fellow at the Hudson Institute in Washington DC, told Al Jazeera: “The Kremlin needs to calculate, and it’s in a bit of a dilemma here, how much do they want to show they’re tough and respond at the risk of harming relations with a new US administration that’s coming to power in a few weeks, which clearly wants to improve relations with Russia.” The White House says it will provide a more detailed briefing of its claims to Congress, said Al Jazeera’s Kimberly Halkett, reporting from Washington, DC. “It’s a move that may have been designed to put Donald Trump in a difficult spot, forcing him as one of his first acts of office to decide whether to lift the Russian sanctions that many members of his own Republican Party support, while at the same time putting at risk the Russian relationship many allege may have helped him win the White House,” said Halkett.