Russian President Putin attends wreath laying ceremony to mark Defender of Fatherland Day at Tomb of Unknown Soldier by Kremlin wall in Moscow

MOSCOW - The latest U.S. sanctions imposed on five Russians and Chechens are grotesque and groundless, and Moscow will hit back with tit-for-tat sanctions, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Thursday.

The U.S. Treasury Department on Wednesday imposed the new sanctions on the five people, including on Chechen Republic head Ramzan Kadyrov, for alleged human rights abuses.