Konstantin Kosachev, the chair of Russia's Federation Council's Foreign Affairs Committee, said that a new US law expanding sanctions on Russia defeats the purpose of any steps Moscow might have taken to mend bilateral ties.
Earlier in the day, US President Donald Trump signed into law a bill that that imposed tough new restrictions on Russia over its alleged interference in the 2016 election as well as military activities in Ukraine, Crimea and Syria.
"The fatal mistake of this bill, which could have been deliberate, is that all the problems that exist [in the bilateral relations] from the US standpoint are lumped together, which defeats the purpose of any step Russia could have made toward the US," Kosachev said Wednesday in an interview with Rossiya 24 broadcaster.
The lawmaker stressed that Moscow’s change of heart on any of the issues raised by Washington was purely hypothetical.
But even if Russia did change its approach to any of US concerns it still would not be enough to bridge the growing divide between the two countries because now Russia is expected to fulfill all US demands at once.
The new sanctions target Russia's defense, intelligence, mining, shipping and railway industries and restrict dealings with Russian banks and energy companies.
Russia has repeatedly refuted US allegations it has interfered in the US election, calling them absurd and intended to deflect public attention from actual election fraud as well as other public concerns.
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