The Russian authorities have decided to introduce "balancing measures" for imported goods from the United States in the form of additional import duties, said the Minister of Economic Development Maxim Oreshkin. His words were spread by the press service of the department.

"Due to the fact that the US continues to apply protective measures in the form of additional import duties on steel and aluminum and refuses to provide compensation for Russia's losses, Russia uses its WTO rights and introduces balancing measures with respect to imports from the United States," said the head Ministry of Economic Development.

Additional fees will be introduced "in the near future," the official said. "They will touch only products that have analogues in the Russian market, and will not have a negative impact on macroeconomic indicators," Oreshkin said.

The Ministry of Economic Development did not specify which products will be distributed specifically for this decision. "The final list will be formed in the near future - it will take several more days," the MED press service specified.

The fact that Russia plans to respond to new US duties on the import of steel and aluminum, it became known at the end of May. The tariffs were introduced on March 23, 2018. The US called them a measure of "national security" (defense production depends on imported steel), so they did not use the mechanism of the Agreement on Special Protective Measures, which provides for consultations with trade partners before the introduction of such measures.

Russia has notified the WTO Council on Trade in Goods that it is ready to take equivalent measures. Before that, Moscow asked the WTO to consult with the United States about the new fees - according to the rules of the organization, Americans should use compensatory measures, for example, to lower tariffs on imports of some other Russian goods. However, the United States failed to offer Russia adequate compensation for its defensive measures within 30 days.

According to Russia, which is contained in the notice to the WTO, the US duties on steel and aluminum (25 and 10% respectively) affect the export of Russian steel by $ 1.51 billion a year and aluminum by $ 1.65 billion (totaling $ 3.158 billion). The fee that Americans could collect from these Russian supplies would be $ 537.6 million.