The European Union says it is ready to act within days to counter proposed new U.S. sanctions on Russia..
The approval of the sanctions by the U.S. House of Representatives has angered EU officials as they see it as breaking transatlantic unity in the West’s response to Moscow’s annexation of Crimea from Ukraine in 2014 and its support for separatists in eastern Ukraine.
Brussels also fears the new sanctions will harm European firms with connections to Russia, and oil and gas projects on which the EU is dependent.
The bloc says it will also prepare to use an EU regulation allowing it to defend companies against the application of extraterritorial measures by the United States.
If diplomacy fails, Brussels plans to file a complaint at the World Trade Organization.
