Mexico seeks cooperation with Russia in space, the head of the national space agency told the Itar-TASS news agency.

      According to Francisco Javier Mendieta, Mexico is looking to Russia to develop its telecommunications industry. He didn’t rule out sending spacemen into orbit but indicated that is a long-term prospect only.

      The growing interest from Mexico comes after the US suspended space cooperation with Russia following its absorption of Crimea.

      The US and the EU also introduced asset freezes and travel bans on a number of individuals and have vowed further action if Russia moved further into eastern Ukraine.

      Pursuant to Executive Order 13661 signed by President Obama on March 16, 2014, the US Treasury will freeze any of assets belonging to 20 Russian individuals and one bank within U.S. jurisdiction and prohibit any transactions with them.

      Among them are 16 officials, including Viktor Ozerov, Vladimir Dzhabarov, Evgeny Bushmin, Nikolai Ryzhkov, Sergey Zheleznyak, Sergey Mironov, Aleksandr Totoonov, Oleg Panteleev, Sergey Naryshkin, Viktor Ivanov, Igor Sergun, Sergei Ivanov, AlexeyGromov, Andrey Fursenko, Vladimir Yakunin, and Vladimir Kozhin. Also on the list are four “members of the inner circle”, including Gennady Timchenko, Arkady Rotenberg, Boris Rotenberg, and Yury Kovalchuk.

      Later, Washington warned Russia of further sanctions if Moscow does not “take steps to de-escalate in eastern Ukraine”.

      According to the official Twitter account of the State Department, John Kerry “expressed strong concern that attacks today by militias in Ukraine were orchestrated.”

      Militants are equipped with Russian weapons and the same uniforms as those worn by Russian forces that invaded Crimea, read the statement.