Russian president Vladimir Putin has ordered the U.S. to reduce its diplomatic presence in Russia by 755 employees in retaliation for sanctions legislation passed by Congress. ABC News: "The personnel of the U.S. diplomatic missions in Russia will be cut by 755 people and will now equal the number of the Russian diplomatic personnel in the United States, 455 people on each side," Putin said in an interview on the Rossiya 1 network. "Because over a thousand employees, diplomats and technical personnel have been working and are still working in Russia, and 755 of them will have to cease their work in the Russian Federation. It’s considerable," Putin said. A State Department official called the move a "regrettable and uncalled for act." "We are assessing the impact of such a limitation and how we will respond to it." the official said. "We have no further comment at this time.” Putin's comments come on the...(Read Full Post)