Moscow to respond to ‘unfriendly’ Canadian sanctions 

The Russian government will prepare a reciprocal response to Canada, which introduced sanctions against 15 Russian citizens, including six State Duma deputies representing Crimea, Kirill Kalinin, spokesperson for Russian Embassy in Ottawa said on Monday, while calling the move “very disappointing.” The new restrictive measures threaten to sour the bilateral relations, which “have started to improve lately,” Kalinin said, labeling the sanctions “unfriendly,” “illegitimate” and “irrational.” Earlier on Monday, Ottawa added 15 people to the list of sanctioned individuals, saying it does not recognize State Duma elections in Crimea and aims to “maintain the necessary pressure on Russia,” which it claimed would help uphold the Minsk Agreements on Ukraine.