Russia To Retaliate against British Sanctions

July 20, 2020 (EIRNS)—In an interview with BBC, Russia’s Ambassador to the United Kingdom Andrei Kelin said Russia will retaliate against sanctions imposed on Russia under the so-called Magnitsky Act. The video of the interview is posted on the Russian embassy website,

“Believe me, as for Magnitsky we will find the way to punish those who are making this type of sanctions. Because sanctions are illegal. There is only one body who can impose sanctions, and this is the United Nations,” Kelin told the Andrew Marr Show on Sunday, July 19, recalling that the U.K. is a permanent member of the UN Security Council, TASS reported yesterday.

In comment to a question on whether Russia would target individuals who are involved in the Magnitsky Act, the ambassador replied: “I haven’t said that; this is you who have said that. But probably it’s a good idea.”

The Ambassador laughed at Marr’s suggestion that Russia was working to secretly seek the removal of Britain as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, if Scotland left the U.K..

“Interesting idea, very frankly,” Kelin joked. “First, I don’t believe that Scotland will withdraw from the United Kingdom, because as I understand, for Scotland it will be very uneasy to live being separate from the U.K.. Second, it is just a guess that Britain will lose its permanent seat in the Security Council,” Kelin said, explaining that Russia did not lose its seat after the Soviet Union collapsed.