Sanctions against Russia provokes global crisis: Putin

By Ovunc Kutlu

ANKARA (AA) - Sanctions against Russia largely provoke a global crisis, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday, according to the country's state-owned media Tass.

The Western countries' sanctions against Moscow hurt the economies of those countries as well, Putin said at a meeting on economy.

He emphasized that inflation has been on the rise in European countries, with some countries seeing double-digit annual figures.

The Russian leader stressed that above all this is seen by a sharp growth of inflation in Europe: in some countries it has already approached 20% annually, while on the whole the prices for products in the European zone have grown more than 11%.

"It is obvious that due to objective economic laws, the continued sanctions frenzy, if I may say so, will inevitably lead to the most complex consequences for the European Union which will be difficult to reverse, for its citizens, as well as for the poorest countries that have already encountered the risks of hunger," he explained.

Putin said the Russian government, together with the central bank and business representatives, are implementing a plan to ensure economic development.

Due to war in Ukraine, major companies from various sectors around the world have announced the suspension of their operations and withdrawal from the Russian market since Feb. 24, and Western countries have imposed sanctions on hundreds of Russian companies and individuals.

In March, annual inflation in euro area rose to 7.4% and climbed to 7.8% in the EU, according to Eurostat.