MOSCOW (Reuters) – The Kremlin said on Tuesday that Russia’s economy has successfully adjusted to years of Western sanctions and is not concerned about the possibility of additional measures.
Last week, the European Union announced plans to close loopholes in existing sanctions against Russia. The EU has imposed 11 rounds of sanctions since Russia sent its armed forces into Ukraine in February 2022. Poland has also proposed additional sanctions.
EU officials have suggested that the sanctions could remain in place for years after the Ukraine conflict concludes.
In response to this possibility, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated, “Russia has been living under a sanctions regime for quite a long time, for decades, and we have sufficiently adapted to it, so such time horizons as five-to-10 years do not scare us.”
“As for new packages, yes, they are being prepared, this is quite well known and predictable … We can only wait to see what else our opponents will come up with,” Peskov added during his regular call with reporters.
Russia contends that the sanctions have actually boosted its domestic industrial production and maintains that they will not dissuade the country from pursuing what it perceives as its vital national interests in Ukraine.
Moscow accuses Western powers of attempting to weaken and undermine Russia’s security by using Ukraine. However, Western countries and Kyiv argue that Russia is engaged in an unprovoked war of aggression and a land grab in Ukraine.
(Reporting by Reuters; Writing by Gareth Jones; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
