Updated 10:49 p.m. Moscow time
DUSHANBE (Tajikistan), September 11 (RIA Novosti) - Moscow regrets EU decision to impose new sanctions against Russia over Ukraine and views them as illegitimate, the Kremlin spokesman said Thursday.
“We regret the decision by EU countries to introduce a new round of sanctions [against Russia],” Dmitry Peskov told reporters in the capital of Tajikistan.
“We have said on numerous occasions that we do not understand and reject the idea of sanctions imposed earlier, while considering them as illegitimate,” Peskov said.
The spokesman added that the new sanctions did not make sense in view of efforts made recently by Russia to stop the bloodshed and to assist in a peaceful resolution of the crisis in eastern Ukraine.
On Thursday, the European Council officially unveiled additional sanctions against Russia adopted by the 28-member European Union earlier this week.
The Russian Foreign Ministry immediately accused the European Union of making a choice against peace process in Ukraine.
Over the last few months, the European Union and the United States have implemented several rounds of economic sanctions over Moscow's alleged participation in the Ukrainian conflict. The total number of individuals subject to Western sanctions now stands at 119.
Moscow has repeatedly denied any involvement in the conflict saying that the sanctions threaten international peace and stability and run counter to the principles of international law.
In August, in response to the sanctions, Moscow imposed a year-long ban on the import of meat, seafood, fruit and vegetables, as well as milk products from the European Union, the United States, Canada, Australia and Norway.
