Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 18
Trend:
Russian President Vladimir Putin believes that the current situation in Russia's economy declined by only a quarter due to Western sanctions, RIA Novosti news agency reported Dec. 18.
He said some 25-30 percent out of the total problems, if considered conditionally, is the impact of sanctions.
"The matter doesn't lie in the Crimea, the point is that we are defending our independence, our sovereignty and the right to existence, this is what we all should understand," the president said.
"Do we want to preserve ourselves and fight, to change our economic structure for the better, to be more independent, to go through this, or we want our skin to be hung on the wall?" Putin asked rhetorically.
Edited by SI