The Russian economy may have taken a beating since its invasion of Ukraine, but all is well, President Vladimir Putin announceunder the pretext that his country was permanently cut off with the West.
Speaking to business leaders at the Saint Petersburg Economic Forum on Friday, the Russian leader said the ongoing cross-border war was proof that “the ugly neo-colonial world order no longer exists and the multipolar world order is being strengthened.”
According to Putin, there is a plan to help Russia’s “long-term sovereign development” into one of the world’s leading economies. “The strategy chosen by both the state and Russian companies has succeeded,” he added.
The country has always lagged behind western countries in terms of GDP per capita and key development indicators, with sanctions imposed by the European Union and the United States on Moscow hitting key sectors such as finance, technology and defense.
Just a day earlier, at the same forum, the Governor of the Central Bank of Russia, Elvira Nabiullina, spoke warned The country could find itself reverting to a planned economic system of the kind that the Soviet Union used. According to her, the “temptation to manage economic restructuring” in the Kremlin can lead to market suppression.
Putin’s appearance at the annual conference came amid “unprecedented” security controls, with mobile internet It said Unusable as a result of electronic warfare measures deployed in the wake of alleged Ukrainian drone attacks deep inside Russia. In a speech that lasted more than an hour, he said Accused Those who defend the neighboring country as “descendants of Hitler”.
“Putin wants to show the West that he’s staying the course,” said Jade McGlynn, an expert on Russian politics at King’s College London. “He is redoubling his strength until the West re-evaluates how far it wants to go.”
The European Union is expected to unveil its 11th package of sanctions against Russia since the start of the war in the coming weeks, with drafts seen by Politico focused on narrowing loopholes that allowed Moscow to bring in goods and export fossil fuels in violation of the restrictions.
