WASHINGTON, December 17 (Sputnik) – The economy of the United States is facing a "headwind" challenge, amid economic slowdowns in other countries, White House Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisors Jason Furman has said during a press briefing.
"I certainly think that the US economy does face a challenge and a headwind from [economic] slowdowns around the world," Furman said Tuesday, emphasizing, however, that Russia is not among the leading causes of these problems.
According to Furman, "places like China that are much bigger trading partners for the United States" have a larger potential in harming the US economy than Russia does.
The United States has imposed several rounds of economic sanctions against Russia over the past few months over its alleged involvement in the Ukrainian crisis – a claim Moscow has repeatedly denied. The European Union and EU and US allies have also joined in, imposing restrictive measures on Russia.
In response, Moscow introduced a one-year ban on some food imports from the countries that had sanctioned it. The ban targets beef, pork, fish, poultry, fruits, vegetables, nuts and dairy products from the United States, the European Union, Canada, Australia and Norway.
The White House said on Tuesday that US President Barack Obama is likely to sign a bill by the end of the week known as the Ukraine Freedom Support Act that would introduce additional sanctions against Russia. The bill would also provide lethal aid to Kiev that launched a military operation against independence supporters in the southeast earlier this year.
