(Reuters) – President Vladimir Putin on Thursday said Russia’s economy had overcome the worst effects of sanctions and was expected to show modest growth this year, despite what he said were attempts to undermine certain industries.
“For many of those who tried and are trying to create problems for us, it was a surprise how effectively we are countering the threats in the economy and in certain sectors of production,” Putin said in televised remarks with officials.
“International institutions have to acknowledge that not only has Russia coped with the shocks that were expected … slight growth is expected in the Russian economy this year.”
Putin did not give a specific forecast for Russia’s gross domestic product (GDP) in his remarks.
Russia’s economic landscape changed drastically after it invaded Ukraine last February, with Western sanctions cutting its biggest banks from the SWIFT financial network, curbing its access to technology and restricting its ability to export oil.
While the government and central bank have acknowledged “difficulties”, Moscow says its economy is resilient and that sanctions have boomeranged against the West by driving up inflation and energy prices.
Initial expectations of a double-digit economic slump in 2022 proved overblown, but analysts still predict a drop in Russia’s GDP of 2% in 2023, after an estimated 2.5% slide in 2022.
(Reporting by Caleb Davis, editing by David Ljunggren and Diane Craft)
