Russia is no longer one of the biggest holders of US Treasuries, having aggressively sold its holdings just as international criticism of the country has escalated.

Its sale of $14bn of long-term Treasuries in May means its holdings have plunged from almost $100bn at the end of March, according to official US data published this week. May’s decline was the second straight month of selling by Russia, leaving its holdings at $14.9bn at the end of May.

The selling came as relations with Washington remained turbulent, with the US imposing stringent sanctions against Moscow in April. The measures targeted seven high-profile Russian businessmen, a dozen of their companies and 17 senior government officials. For the first time the sanctions affected globally important public companies such as Rusal, the aluminium producer.