Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday that Moscow will determine further steps in restoring ties with the US depending on the policy of President-elect Donald Trump.
"Reserving the right to retaliate, we will not resort to the level of irresponsible 'kitchen' diplomacy and further steps toward the restoration of Russian-US relations will be built on the basis of the policy carried out by the administration of President Donald Trump," Putin said.
Commenting on the new sanctions, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Maria Zakharova said that this time the US was "slapped in the face" by its own government.
"This decision [to impose new sanctions against Moscow] is very weird. It is symbolic and I would say it is provocative," Graziani told RIA Novosti.
According to the analyst, Obama’s actions indicate that the outgoing US president is likely to continue his political career after leaving office.
"Now, the most important is whether Trump is able to make good on his electoral promises, particularly on establishing a new balance in relations with Russia," he underscored.
Commenting on Kremlin’s response to the new sanctions, Graziani praised the reserve approach by Moscow.
"It is very important that the Kremlin delivered a cold-blooded response to this provocation. Moscow should try to minimize the damage Obama is inflicting [on US-Russia ties] in the last days of his presidency," Graziani concluded.
