"The United States has not yet announced sanctions against our media group and is pushing Europe forward. It is another step toward self-destruction made by Europe and it benefits no one," he said.
The European Union accused Rossiya Segodnya of "disseminating false information" about the conflict in Ukraine and the spillover effect of Western sanctions imposed on Russia on poorer countries. It also added the company’s executive director, Kirill Vyshinsky, to its blacklist.
Vyshinsky says he was unfazed by the sanctions. "I took it calmly and feel indifferent. It did not elicit any strong or not-so-strong emotion," he told Sputnik. "It was clear that after Ukraine came up with a long list the European Union was sure to follow with a sanctions list of its own," he added.
Timur Shafir, senior official at the Russian Union of Journalists, said the EU's newest round of sanctions was an attempt to limit Europe’s access to information from Russia.