OREANDA-NEWS. Members of the foreign policy committees of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party have called on the government to impose economic sanctions on Russia if it "invades" Ukraine, Jiji news agency has reported.

After the meeting, House of Councillors member Masahisa Sato said government measures, including the suspension of talks on visa facilitation for Russians coming to Japan after the 2014 annexation of Crimea, were "not enough" and said sanctions against Russia should be strengthened.

The agency did not specify what kind of new sanctions might be imposed against Russia.

Apart from Japan, the USA and a number of European countries also threatened Russia with sanctions in case of aggression against Ukraine. Reports that Russian authorities were planning an "invasion" of Ukraine began to appear in the Western media in the autumn. Then, US and Ukrainian officials said that Russia was allegedly planning an attack. Moscow has repeatedly denied the allegations.

Two draft sanctions have been prepared in the US Congress in case of "Russian aggression". In particular, they would impose restrictions on Russia's leadership, including President Vladimir Putin, as well as against the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline and Russian state debt.

Putin, for his part, has warned that new US sanctions could lead to a complete breakdown in relations between the two countries.