Russian President Vladimir Putin gestures as he speaks at the 8th annual VTB Capital "Russia Calling!" Investment Forum in in Moscow, Russia, Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2016.Russia’s economy has been on its way down since it slipped into recession at the start of last year. (AP Photo/Ivan Sekretarev)
The Russian president described the White House’s decision to expel 35 Russian suspected spies as a ‘provocation aimed to further undermine Russian-American relations.’ But Putin added that Russia would not deport U.S. diplomats, despite earlier being urged to do so by Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Russia would not leave President Obama’s sanctions unanswered and that allegations that Moscow interfered during the U.S. election were baseless. ‘We surely cannot leave such tricks without an answer,’ Lavrov added.
