SANTIAGO — Russia will not take any immediate retaliatory measures following Western sanctions over the Ukraine crisis but could reassess that stance in the future, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Wednesday.
"We are not going to act, to do stupid things … we want to give our partners the possibility of calming down," Lavrov said at a news conference during a visit to Chile.
However, he said Moscow could change its position depending on whether sanctions are prolonged or deepened.
"If their actions continue and they turn to economic measures, in that case we would further study the situation," he said in translated comments.
The United States and the European Union imposed a new wave of sanctions against Russia this week for its involvement in Ukraine and threatened tougher economic measures if Moscow does not de-escalate the crisis.
Lavrov is on a long-scheduled trip to Latin America this week. He criticized the sanctions from Cuba on Tuesday, saying they "defy all common sense".
"We never act under pressure from anybody. We always act on national interests, international law and the full situation," Lavrov added on Wednesday.
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