‘Act of war’: Russia says US sanctions on oil firms are counterproductive to stop Ukraine conflict

Russia's foreign ministry said that the root causes of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine need to be resolved.

Reacting to the sanctions announced by the United States against Russian oil firms on Wednesday, Russia's deputy chairman of security council Dmitry Medvedev said on Thursday that the move amounted to an “act of war”. He also said that the United States has aligned itself with “loony” Europe.

Russia's foreign ministry said that the sanctions announced by the US were extremely counterproductive.

Medvedev also described the United States as Russia's "opponent" and said that “peacemaker” Trump is on a path of war with Russia.

"The US is our enemy, and their talkative 'peacemaker' has now fully embarked on the warpath with Russia," Medvedev wrote on Telegram.

"The decisions taken are an act of war against Russia. And now Trump has fully aligned himself with loony Europe," he added.

Russia's foreign ministry also said that the sanctions announced by the US to force Russia into stopping the war in Ukraine were extremely counterproductive, reported news agency Reuters.

Maria Zakharova, spokesperson of Russia's foreign ministry, told reporters in Moscow that the root causes of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine need to be resolved that their goals in Ukraine remain unchanged.

"Our country has developed a strong immunity to Western restrictions and will continue to confidently develop its economic potential, including its energy potential," she said.

While reacting to the sanctions announced by the European Union, Russia said that the EU elites could not accept that their sanctions were not working.

On Wednesday (local time), United States' department of the treasury announced sanctions on two of the biggest Russian oil firms — Open Joint Stock Company Rosneft Oil Company (Rosneft) and Lukoil OAO (Lukoil) — in a bid to get Russia to stop the war in Ukraine. Before that, European nations also approved a 19th package of sanctions against Moscow on Wednesday.

Russia's war with Ukraine is just months away from entering its fourth year as Trump continues to make efforts to stop it. This is the first time Trump has announced sanctions against Russia during his second term.

Trump also cancelled his upcoming meeting with his Russian counterpart Putin in Budapest, saying that it “did not feel right” to him.

(With inputs from AFP, Reuters)