Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday it would be "impossible" to isolate Russia and that Moscow would defy the West's attempts to push Russia off the global stage.
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Speaking at an economic forum in the eastern city of Vladivostok, Putin said Russia saw more opportunities in entering markets in the Middle East and Iran, following the imposition of sweeping Western sanctions in response to Russia's military campaign in Ukraine. He also said Russia's economy was coping with what he termed the financial and technological aggression of the West, but acknowledged some difficulties in some industries and regions.
Video: Reuters
"As I said earlier, we are now, without a doubt, focused on developing our infrastructure in the East, and also developing the international North-South corridor and our Black Sea and Azov ports. We will not forget about this. This will open new possibilities for Russian companies to access markets in Iran, India, countries of the Middle East and Africa. And, of course, also to supplies coming from these countries," Putin said, blaming the West for "aggression" toward Russia. " There's no other word for it," he noted, adding that the local economy has defied the odds and weathered the imposition of sanctions. "Foreign currency exchanges and stock exchanges have stabilized. Inflation is going down, as I've said. The level of unemployment is at an all-time low: it's under 4%."
He warned that Russia will continue its military invasion of Ukraine until its goals are met. Putin said that the main goal behind sending troops into Ukraine was protecting civilians in the east of that country after eight years of fighting. "It wasn't us who started the military action, we are trying to put an end to it," Putin said, reaffirming his argument that he sent troops into Ukraine to protect Moscow-backed separatist regions in Ukraine, which have fought Ukrainian forces in the conflict that erupted in 2014 following Russia's annexation of Crimea.
"Russia is a sovereign state. We will always defend our national interests and follow our own political course. And we value these qualities in our partners who, for years, have been reliable and responsible in terms of our trade, investment and other ways of cooperation. I'm speaking about our colleagues from the Asia-Pacific region. The vast majority of Asia-Pacific countries find the destructive logic of sanctions unacceptable."
He sounded upbeat about Russia's chances of success to emerge victorious despite the international pressure. "Russia has resisted the economic, financial and technological aggression of the West," Putin said. "I'm sure that we haven't lost anything and we won't lose anything. The most important gain is the strengthening of our sovereignty, it's an inevitable result of what's going one."
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