Pres spox says Russia ready for tough new sanctions

MOSCOW, Feb 16 (PRIME) -- Russia would not welcome new sanctions and hopes that political will for dialogue will prevail but is still ready for tough sanctions, presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Tuesday.

"We know that talking about sanctions is unfortunately done by Brussels and the U.S. with manic insistence,” Peskov told reporters.

“This is what we would not welcome, this is what we would not like. We hope that political will for continuation of dialogue will prevail and we will solve the toughest questions in relations solely in the framework of dialogue."

But the unfriendly moves "force us to be in constant mobilization and readiness for such phenomena," Peskov said.

Peskov also said that President Vladimir Putin will most probably start to meet people in person in a few months, but declined to give a clear forecast.

“I think it will be resumed in a few months,” he said. “It will be gradual anyway. But this is a kind of forecast where you cannot be precise.”

According to Peskov, the authorities have not decided whether to prolong the cheap mortgage program to 2021–2024.

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