Russia’s President says that the barrage of Western sanctions against Russia has failed. Vladimir Putin said that the West “expected to quickly upset the financial-economic situation, provoke panic in the markets, the collapse of the banking system and shortages in stores”.

He added that “the strategy of the economic blitz has failed”.

Putin noted that “Russia has withstood the unprecedented pressure”, arguing that the ruble has strengthened and the country has recorded a historic high trade surplus of USD 58 billion in the first quarter of the year. Instead, he contended that the sanctions backfired against the U.S. and its European allies, speeding up inflation and leading to a drop in living standards.