Russian State Duma considers US, EU sanctions on Russia absurd, unreal

GENEVA, March 20 (Itar-Tass) - The State Duma, lower house of parliament, considers the US and the EU sanctions in response to Crimea’s accession to Russia absurd and unreal. “The US and EU sanctions against Russia are absurd and unreal,” State Duma Foreign Affairs Committee deputy chairman Aleksander Romanovich told Itar-Tass. The State Duma lawmaker is head of the Russian delegation at the 130th Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) currently underway in Geneva. “This is an operetta and we can only laugh - for example, sanctions have been imposed against (head of the A Just Russia party faction in the State Duma Sergei) Mironov. Then it turned out to be that he had not been banned the entry. It was said his property abroad had been arrested,” Romanovich said. “Maybe, the list will be expanded. As for response measures: we should look at how sanctions should be imposed,” the lawmaker said. Among those who are included in the sanction list are head of the Federation Council Defence Committee Viktor Ozerov, State Duma Foreign Affairs Committee first deputy chairman Vladimir Dzhabarov, leader of the a Just Russia Party faction Sergei Mironov, State Duma deputy speaker Sergei Zhelezhnyak and head of the State Duma Committee for the CIS Affairs Leonid Slutsky. The list also includes commander of the Black Sea Fleet Rear Admiral Aleksander Vitko, commander of the Western Military District Anatoly Sidorov and commander of the Southern Military District Aleksander Galkin. They are banned to enter the territory of the European Union. The EU also intends to freeze their accounts in European banks. In addition, Europe and the USA make statements to toughen sanctions and expand lists. German Chancellor Angela Merkel demanded further sanctions are imposed against Russia. The sanction list will be expanded. It will include names of Russian and Ukrainian politicians, who will be banned to enter the EU and whose foreign accounts are frozen, Merkel said.