PRESS RELEASE
Russia, China Respond to New Sanctions: ‘They Won’t Help’
Aug. 23, 2017 (EIRNS)—The U.S. Treasury Department’s announcement yesterday of new sanctions on Chinese and Russian individuals and companies, for allegedly conducting business with North Korea that abetted its missile and nuclear weapons program, has drawn a sharp response from both Russia and China.
As reported by TASS, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov charged that "Washington has stepped on the same rake again," warning that by imposing these new sanctions, the U.S. is continuing the "persistent destruction of bilateral relations" which began with Barack Obama. While Ryabkov said that his government is in the process of formulating a response, he expressed the hope that "the voice of reason will prevail over time. In theory," he noted, "Washington should have learned from the past that we do not accept the language of sanctions, since these actions only hinder solutions to real problems."
From China, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said in her regular press briefing today that U.S. sanctions "will not help solve the problem, nor are they conducive to U.S.-China cooperation and mutual trust.... We urge the U.S. side to stop this wrongdoing and correct it." She continued, however, that the "extremely tense" situation on the Korean Peninsula "has shown some signs of abating" thanks to the efforts of several parties, though "it remains highly complex and sensitive."
Speaking more forcefully, Global Times editorialized today that the U.S. "has acted beyond its authority and its unilateral sanctions are unreasonable." These actions, it asserted, "aim to tarnish the international image of China and Russia ... and portray the two as violators of UN sanctions."
