MOSCOW, October 7 (RIA Novosti) - The acting head of Crimea Sergei Aksyonov warned Western countries Tuesday that if they continue to intimidate the republic or impose sanctions against it, the regional authorities may prohibit foreign diplomats from entering the peninsula.
"If they take such sanctions, we will take the same sanctions against the entry of foreign diplomats to the territory of the Republic of Crimea," Aksyonov said.
According to Aksyonov, it seems that some Western leaders are obsessed with harming Crimea and Russia in any way possible.
"Let them deal with their issues," Aksyonov said.
Relations between Russia and the West have deteriorated due to the situation in Ukraine. Following Crimea's reunification with Russia, the United States and the European Union have introduced several rounds of economic sanctions against Russia, blaming Moscow for meddling in Ukraine's internal affairs — claims that Russia has repeatedly denied.
Entities targeted by the sanctions include the Kerch ferry enterprise and the Sevastopol commercial sea port in Crimea.
In August, Moscow responded to Western sanctions, implementing a one-year ban on certain food imports from the European Union, the United States, Australia, Canada and Norway.
The latest EU and US sanctions were introduced against Russia in the second half of September. The sanctions predominantly target banking, and the energy and military sectors and are considered misplaced by many political experts, as they are not in line with the intention to peacefully settle the ongoing Ukrainian conflict.
