U.S. to Expand Sanctions on Russia As Soon As Thursday, Report Says

The Obama administration is set to announce expanded sanctions on Russia this week—perhaps as soon as Thursday, according to one report—in response to the country’s tampering with this year’s U.S. presidential election.

Russia said it is prepared to retaliate accordingly to what it deems any “hostile steps,” which, according to the report, is expected to include the United States naming names.

The Washington Post reported the news with an eye to the mechanics of leveling the sanctions Tuesday night, and CNN published its own report Wednesday. Here’s CNN with more:

The actions are expected to include expanded sanctions and diplomatic measures, the officials said, in what the administration deems a proportional response to a Russian operation that went beyond cyber hacking activities common among nations. Russia will respond to any “hostile steps” that the US may take in response to allegations of hacking during the 2016 election, according to the official representative for the ministry. Some of the steps are expected to name individuals associated with a Russian disinformation campaign that US intelligence officials say used hacked information from mostly Democratic Party organizations and officials to attack the Hillary Clinton presidential campaign.

The measures are separate from the intelligence review of foreign cyber-interference ordered by the president earlier this month. Those findings aren’t due out until January.

Administration officials, including the president himself in December, have said for months that the government would also act outside the public eye, and do so “at a time and place of our choosing.”

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