The Obama administration is expected to announce several retaliatory measures against Russia as payback for meddling with the 2016 US president election.

According to US government officials who are privy to the plan, the actions included expanding sanctions and diplomatic measures, which the Obama administration deemed are proportionate reactions to a Russian campaign that went beyond the normal hacking.

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The United States government is expected to name individuals associated with a Russian disinformation campaign. Intelligence officials said that the campaign used hacked data from mostly Democratic Party organs and officials to smear Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign.

Russia promised to respond to any action that the United States may decide to take over the allegations of hacking.

Maria Zakahrova, the official representative of Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said that "If Washington does really take new hostile steps, they will be answered," warning that any action the United States will initiate against Russian diplomatic missions in the US will immediately bounce back on US diplomats in Russia.

In a statement on the ministry's website, Zakahrova said that Russia is already getting tired with all the lies on Russian hackers. She further said that the Obama administration is using hacking as an excuse to cover for its own failure.

The US government's announcement comes after weeks of internal deliberations on how to best respond to a Russian cyber activity that the US law enforcement agencies have watched unfold for over one year. 

US government officials have been criticized by the Democrats for not taking public action against Russia as soon as they discovered the hacks. One of the reasons given is that White House officials did not want to be seen as if they were favoring Hillary Clinton.

TagsBarack Obama, United States, Russia