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President Trump plans to sign legislation slapping new punitive sanctions on Russia over election meddling, the White House said Friday, effectively ending hopes for the fresh start with Moscow that he came into office promising to seek.

Trump opposed the legislation as an infringement on executive power but faced the certainty of an embarrassing congressional override if he vetoed it. The announcement came hours after the Russian government announced that it would seize U.S. diplomatic properties and kick out a large number of U.S. diplomats.

The Russian action was in response to the sanctions bill passed by Congress on Thursday. It signaled a loss of patience by Russian President Vladimir Putin with the Trump administration’s inability to change the troubled relationship between the two nuclear-armed powers, which stands at its lowest point since the end of the Cold War.

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The Post’s Andrew Roth explains a statement the Russian Foreign Ministry issued July 28, seizing U.S. diplomatic properties and demanding the State Department reduce its staff in Russia. (Andrew Roth, Sarah Parnass/The Washington Post)

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Trump intends to sign Russia sanctions bill, White House says. It would let Congress block him from easing sanctions …

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