US Threatens To Give Sanctions To President Putin And Armed Forces Chief Of Staff, Kremlin Says Russia Is Never Afraid

JAKARTA - The proposed new United States (US) sanctions, including against the Russian leadership, could sever all ties between the two countries, with the country never fearing sanctions, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Sunday.

"Of course, that's beyond our understanding," Peskov said in an interview with CNN as quoted by TASS on January 17, referring to some of the latest (US) proposals calling for sanctions against the Russian leadership.

"Sanctions of this kind could potentially lead to a severance of ties between our two countries, which would not benefit Moscow or Washington. That would be a grave mistake."

The Kremlin spokesman further said Russia was not afraid of sanctions.

"To some extent, we are trying to take advantage of them in terms of developing our domestic economy, our domestic production. We are big enough and independent enough to be vulnerable to these sanctions," he explained.

In the same vein, Peskov said, sanctions have never succeeded in getting countries to change their course.

"Can you recall an example of a situation where sanctions helped you solve a problem? Where were sanctions really effective in getting a country to take certain steps? That never happened," he stressed.

Last Wednesday, a group of US Democratic lawmakers, led by Senator Bob Menendez, introduced a bill to the US Senate on restrictions on Russia if tensions around Ukraine escalated.

Titled the 'Defending Ukraine Sovereignty Act of 2022', the bill includes, among other things, sanctions against Russian President Vladimir Putin, the prime minister, the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the head of the Ministry of Defence, the head of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces and other members of the military leadership. In addition, restrictive measures may affect the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline.

To begin the discussion, the bill must be approved by both houses of Congress and signed by US President Joe Biden.

Emily Horn, a spokeswoman for the White House National Security Council, said earlier that the United States Government supported the proposed legislation.