Russian President Vladimir Putin has criticized the United States for releasing a list of over 200 people with close ties to the Russian government. Putin described the release as a hostile and stupid move led by opponents of U.S. President Donald Trump. The U.S. Treasury Department published the list on Monday as required under a law approved by Congress. Lawmakers who voted for the measure wanted to punish Russia for interfering in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. Some Russians worried that the publication of the list would lead to additional U.S. actions or restrictions from the global financial system. But the publication does not include any new sanctions. In a written statement, a State Department official said just the threat of sanctions had already affected Russian companies. She said that U.S. officials estimate other countries have cancelled plans to buy several billion dollars’ worth of products from Russia’s defense industry.
