State Duma passes countersanctions bill in final reading

MOSCOW, May 22 (PRIME) -- The State Duma, the Russian parliament’s lower house, on Tuesday passed a bill on countersanctions against the U.S. in the third and final reading.

On April 6, the U.S. imposed sanctions against 38 Russian tycoons, officials and companies.

The bill encompasses the possibility of countersanctions against the U.S. and other countries that supported anti-Russian sanctions.

The bill allows for termination or suspension of international cooperation in spheres defined by the president, as well as introduction of ban or restrictions on imports or exports of products and raw materials, participation in state purchases and purchases of state corporations and other corporate bodies and participation in privatization.

Restrictive measures should not be applied against vitally important goods, whose analogues are not produced in Russia and other countries, as well as against goods brought by citizens for personal use.

To become law, the bill must be approved by the Federation Council, the parliament’s upper house, and signed by the president.

End