MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Washington's containment policy does not exclusively target Russia, but is also directed against the European Union, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in an interview published Wednesday.
Speaking on the issue of anti-Russian sanctions the spokeswoman noted that the EU was persuaded to impliment them by the United States.
"Washington is implementing a containment policy, but in this case these actions target not only Russia but the European Union also," she told the Russian Argumenty i Fakty newspaper.
According to Zakharova, the United States, in particular, is trying to prevent the strengthening of the EU-Russia relations.
"To allow close ties between Europe and Russia means to strengthen both. And it was Washington that forced the EU to impose sanctions, it has been admitted by both [US Vice President Joe] Biden and [US State Secretary John] Kerry," she added.
Relations between Russia and the Western states went downhill in 2014, when Brussels joined Washington in accusing Moscow of fueling the Ukrainian crisis and imposed several rounds of sanctions as a punitive measure.
The Russian authorities have refuted the allegations, warning that the Western sanctions are counterproductive. In response to the Western restrictive measures, in August 2014, Russia announced a one-year food embargo on some products originating in states that imposed sanctions against it. The ban has since been extended for another year.
