Putin: "Russia's economy, bigger than before it was sanctioned"

Russia's GDP grew by 3.2% in the first ten months of 2023, already higher than before the country's economy was sanctioned by the West, according to the leader of the Kremlin, Vladimir Putin, quoted by the TASS agency, announcing Azernews.

Present recently at a VTB Bank forum, the Russian leader said: "In the ten months of this year, Russia's Gross Domestic Product grew by 3.2%. Today, it is already higher than it was before the onslaught of Western sanctions. We expect that by the end of this year the GDP will increase by at least 3.5%".

Putin pointed out that Russia is ahead of all major EU countries in terms of economic growth rate.

"Russia is the largest economy in Europe and, in terms of growth rate, it is now ahead of all the leading countries of the European Union," the Russian president emphasized.

Last year, the Russian economy decreased by 2.1%.

• Putin: "Russia is becoming the new global growth center"

President Vladimir Putin also said economic isolation from the West was only helping Russia become a new growth center in a world entering a period of radical change as the West fell behind, according to Reuters.

Russia's export-focused economy is under Western sanctions after Moscow decided to send troops to Ukraine in early 2022.

Russia's economy has been boosted by a sharp increase in defense and manufacturing spending amid the conflict in Ukraine, which Moscow calls a "special military operation," according to the source.

But Russia's economy is facing high interest rates, which are expected to be raised to 16% this week; with high inflation, which will end the year well above the central bank's 4% target, and a labor crunch that has pushed unemployment to a record low of 2.9%.

Putin, as he has done on several occasions, praised the health of the Russian economy and state finances, calling the Western sanctions an attack that failed to deliver any significant blow.

"The world has entered an era of radical changes and serious tests, not only for certain companies and sectors, but also for entire countries and regions," Putin said, adding: "Only a strong, stable country and, I emphasize, sovereign will be able to successfully pass this phase, becoming one of the growth centers of the new global economy".

Putin also said that the Western financial system is becoming obsolete from a technological point of view, stating: "They are resting on their laurels. For so long it has become accustomed to monopolies and exclusivity, to the lack of real alternatives, to the habit of not changing anything, that it becomes archaic".

Putin also said the state budget deficit also narrowed in November, falling to 878 billion rubles ($9.51 billion), or 0.5 percent of GDP in the first 11 months of the year, from 1.24 trillion of rubles at the end of October.