WASHINGTON. Dec 11 (Interfax) - Russian Ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov has described the imposition by Washington of sanctions on a number of Russian companies as an unfriendly move that puts a further strain on relations between the two countries.
"The actions of the U.S. administration are just another unfriendly and detrimental move against Russia which will deepen the crisis in bilateral relations. The allegations that Russian officials are responsible for human rights violations are groundless and beneath criticism," Antonov told reporters.
Russia "has been tirelessly calling upon refusal of any illegitimate unilateral sanctions and returning to normal inter-state relations," including dialogue, but Russia has not received any answers to its proposals thus far, he said.
"With these destructive measures the administration is seemingly trying to distract public attention from comprehensive systemic problems inside the United States. The sphere of human rights is one of them," the ambassador said.
On Thursday, the U.S. administration announced sanctions against six Russian companies which Washington accused of involvement in human rights violations, according to a document circulated by the U.S. Treasury Department.
They include the Russian promotion company Absolute Championship Akhmat, the Akhmat Kadyrov Foundation, the Akhmat MMA club, Chechen Mineral Waters Ltd., FC Akhmat Grozny, and Megastroyinvest.