Putin weighs counter-sanctions against United States - RIA cites Kremlin

President Vladimir Putin discussed retaliatory sanctions against the United States on Friday with Russia's security council after Washington hit Moscow with an array of punitive measures, the RIA news agency quoted the Kremlin as saying.

The U.S. government on Thursday blacklisted Russian companies, expelled Russian diplomats and barred U.S. banks from buying sovereign bonds from Russia's central bank, national wealth fund and Finance Ministry.

The Kremlin said earlier on Friday that Moscow was mulling its response.