Doha: Russia on Friday vowed a "painful response" to the new package of sanctions imposed by the European Union and plans to take effective and strict measures in this regard. According to Qatar News Agency, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova stated in a comment published on the Russian Foreign Ministry's website that Russia strongly condemns any illegal unilateral coercive measures. She noted that the number of countries supporting this approach is growing and that Russia will naturally respond to the latest sanctions with effective and strict actions. Zakharova emphasized that even within Brussels, there is skepticism about the success of sanctions against Russia, yet they continue to pursue what she described as a "suicidal path" for the European Union. On Thursday, the European Union announced the adoption of the nineteenth package of economic sanctions against Russia. The new measures include a complete halt to imports of liquefied natural gas from Russia and additional actions agai nst the Russian shadow fleet, which enables Moscow to export oil by circumventing Western sanctions. The sanctions also targeted 117 new vessels from this fleet, increasing the total number of vessels subject to EU sanctions to 558. Furthermore, the new sanctions impact companies in several third countries, including 12 in China and three in India, accused of assisting Moscow in bypassing Western sanctions and transferring technology, particularly for drone manufacturing.