(MENAFN) In a recent escalation of tensions between the United States and Russia, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham has been added to Moscow's list of extremists and terrorists, as reported by local media on Tuesday. Graham's inclusion, marked as entry number 3967 by the Federal Financial Monitoring Service, comes in response to his recent call for the United States government to designate Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism.
The Federal Financial Monitoring Service, the Russian agency responsible for the list, did not provide specific reasons for Graham's inclusion or details on the criteria used to label individuals or entities as extremists.
Senator Graham's remarks were made in the aftermath of the news surrounding the death of Russian opposition figure Alexey Navalny. Speaking on the CBS program Face the Nation, Graham suggested the designation as a way to make Russians "pay a price for killing Navalny."
The Russian prison service reported Navalny's collapse after a routine walk, with medics unable to save his life. The Russian government, however, emphasized a lack of autopsy results and accused Western politicians of biased blame-shifting.
Lindsey Graham is known for his hawkish stance on foreign policy, having previously praised United States military aid to Ukraine as "the best money we've ever spent" during a visit to Kiev last year. This statement stirred controversy after the office of Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky edited Graham's remarks, leading to a misrepresentation that he was endorsing the killing of Russians by Ukrainians. While Graham clarified that he did not make such an endorsement, he did express the opinion that Russians dying at the hands of Ukrainians on the battlefield was a positive outcome.
The inclusion of Senator Graham on Russia's list adds another layer of complexity to the strained relationship between the two nations, highlighting the tit-for-tat nature of diplomatic exchanges and the challenges of navigating sensitive geopolitical issues. As both countries grapple with differing perspectives on international matters, the consequences of such designations on diplomatic relations remain to be seen.
Senator Lindsey Graham Added to Russia's List of 'Extremists' in Retaliatory Move"
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