Moscow will give tough response to hostile steps by the United States aimed against Russia, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Friday.
"We will give a tough response to those things that hurt us absolutely without rhyme or reason, and which are dictated only by the desire to spoil our relations with the United States," Lavrov said in his address to students of the Moscow MGIMO international relations university.
Lavrov commented on the U.S. demand to close Russia's Consulate General in San Francisco, a chancery annex in Washington, and a consular annex in New York City by Saturday.
Washington reacted to Moscow's decision to cut U.S. diplomatic staff in Russia to numbers equaling Russian staff in the United States and seizing two U.S. properties in Moscow.
Moscow in its turn reacted to the December decision of previous U.S. administration of Barack Obama to expel 35 Russian diplomats and seize two Russian Properties.
However, Lavrov did not specify what Moscow's next step could be, saying that the U.S. statement was received in the early hours and has yet to be examined.
