国际英语新闻:Russian PM rules out military response to sanctions

MOSCOW, Oct. 18 (Xinhua) -- Sanctions are counter-productive and Russia will never resort to military measures in dealing with the issue, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said Thursday.

"This is absolutely out of the question in the contemporary world. We are a responsible state and a permanent member of the UN (United Nations) Security Council," Medvedev said in an interview with Euronews when answering a question from the host, according to a transcript published by the Russian government.

He added that there are various forms of response, including asymmetrical responses, which are not necessarily military in nature.

The prime minister underlined that sanctions would not lead to anything good but instead create pressure and obstacles in the development of bilateral ties.

Sanctions against the banking sector, in particular, are the hardest sanctions, and equal "a declaration of trade war," he said.

For instance, he said that Russia's trade with the European Union (EU) was almost halved after the sanctions were imposed, plunging from 430 billion euros (about 494 billion U.S. dollars) to 220-230 billion euros (252-264 billion dollars) at one point.

"This is why sanctions are a bad approach," Medvedev said.

Since 2014, Western countries including the United States and the EU have imposed a range of economic sanctions on Russia over its annexation of Crimea, formerly part of Ukraine, and its alleged role in the conflict in the south of the country.