Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday set a defiant tone as he delivered a speech about the state of his country's economy following a series of sanctions.
Mr Putin said that efforts to “hammer” the Russian had failed and gloomy forecasts for the Russian economy had not been fulfilled. He said that the country’s economy will overcome sanctions that he called “reckless and insane.”
Addressing the St Petersburg International Economic Forum, he said that sanctions are harmful to those that impose them, and predicted they could cost the EU more than $400 billion.
He began his 73-minute address with a lengthy denunciation of countries that he contends want to weaken Russia.
He said the US “declared victory in the Cold War and later came to think of themselves as God’s own messengers on planet Earth.”
He also attacked the West for blaming him personally for its economic troubles, claiming that negative trends in the global economy have not been caused by what he calls the “special military operation” in Ukraine.
In a combative speech at Russia's flagship annual economic forum, he said that Russia was not to blame for rising prices on the global grain market, accusing the US of driving up food prices by printing money and “snapping up” food on global markets.
Mr Putin said that Russia stood ready to boost its exports of grain and fertilisers, and that it would send food exports to Africa and the Middle East.
He pledged that Moscow would continue to develop as an “open economy” despite unprecedented western sanctions imposed after it sent forces into neighbouring Ukraine.
Mr Putin said Russia would keep dealing with western companies and that he hoped gas flows would increase via new routes.
He added that Russia would continue to expand economic co-operation “with those who want it”.
Mr Putin took the opportunity to be highly critical of the US, accusing it of treating other countries as “colonies”.
Amid a lengthy denunciation of the US and its allies, Mr Putin said: “Nothing will be as it used to be in global politics.”
He said the European Union had lost its “political sovereignty” by starting down a track that would lead to radicalism and changeover of elites, criticising the bloc's economic policies to address high inflation and inequality.
The three most powerful European leaders visited Kyiv on Thursday to give their backing to Ukraine's bid to join the EU.
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Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, left, and French President Emmanuel Macron visit Irpin, outside Kyiv, and survey damage following Russia's invasion. AP -
Ukrainian troops fire with a French self-propelled Caesar howitzer towards Russian positions at a front line in the eastern region of Donbas. AFP -
Workers pour molten steel into a mould at a foundry in Berdyansk, Zaporizhzhia region, in an area under Russian military control. AP -
Russian soldiers guard an area next to a field of wheat in the Zaporizhzhia region. AP -
A US Marine Corps Harrier fighter jet is parked on board the assault ship USS Kearsarge, during the Baltops 22 exercise in the Baltic Sea. Reuters -
A man picks up debris after his house was destroyed by shelling in the city of Dobropillia, Donbas region. AFP -
Smoke rises after shelling in Ukraine's breakaway enclave of Donetsk. AFP -
A mascot is wrapped in the colours of the Ukrainian flag before the country's Uefa Nations League football match against the Republic of Ireland in Lodz, Poland. Reuters -
Russian soldiers walk near a monument at the entrance of Mariupol, which has been painted in the colours of the Russian flag. AFP -
French troops at an air base in Constanta, Romania. French President Emmanuel Macron is expected to visit the base in a show of support for Nato and European allies following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. AP -
Svitlana Nazarenko, sister of Mykhailo Tereshchenko, is comforted by her son during her brother's funeral in Kyiv. The Ukrainian soldier was killed in the Donbas region. Getty -
Russian troops demine the bay and beach of Mariupol, Ukraine. AFP -
A Russian soldier inspects the Azovstal steel plant, in Mariupol, in territory which is under control of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic. AP -
A house heavily damaged by Russian shelling is seen through a broken window, in the town of Bakhmut, Donetsk region. AP -
Maryna Golovnia sits in a van with her children as they leave their home in Bakhmut, amid fighting. Getty Images -
Ballet dancer Mykyta Sukhorukov rehearses before the evening Gala Concert of the Ukrainian National Ballet, in Kosice, Slovakia. Getty Images -
A Ukrainian soldier looks on from inside a tank at a position in the breakaway Donetsk enclave, as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues. Reuters -
Boys play on top of a damaged Russian tank in Kyiv. EPA -
An Orthodox priest blesses Ukrainian soldiers during a service at a church in the Eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv. EPA -
A damaged Ukrainian navy ship, the 'Donbas', lies partially submerged near the pier in the port city of Mariupol. EPA -
Ukrainian soldiers load a projectile into a tank near the small city of Svitlodarsk, in the breakaway Ukrainian enclave of Donetsk. EPA -
Smoke rises after the Russian military struck a compound at the Azot Chemical Plant in Lysychansk, Ukraine. Reuters -
A Russian serviceman on patrol outside the Ukrainian town of Schastia. AFP -
Mourners gather during the funeral of Ukrainian serviceman Ruslan Skalskyi in Lviv. AFP -
Civilians are evacuated from Lysychansk, in the eastern Donbas region of Ukraine. AFP -
A man passes two destroyed military lorries in Lysychansk. AFP -
Ukrainian soldiers run for cover during clashes with Russian troops in Lysychansk. AFP -
An elderly woman reacts as Ukrainian soldiers lead her to safety during a battle with Russian troops in Lysychansk. AFP -
A wounded woman is assisted by Ukrainian soldiers in Lysychansk. AFP -
A house burns after being shelled in Lysychansk. AFP -
A Ukrainian serviceman speaks on a radio at a front line in the Donbas region. AFP -
A man walks next to a damaged building in Lysychansk. Reuters -
A man with children rides a bicycle along an empty street, as smoke rises after Russian shelling in Lysychansk. Reuters -
An unexploded shell is stuck in the ground in Lysychansk. euters -
An elderly woman, who was evacuated from the Lysychansk area, cries moments before travelling by train to western Ukraine from Pokrovsk railway station. AP
Meanwhile, Russia's foreign ministry on Friday accused Brussels of “manipulating” Ukraine after the European Commission recommended the pro-western country be granted candidate status to join the 27-nation bloc.
“We see how for many years the western community has been manipulating the idea of some kind of involvement of Ukraine in their integration structures,” ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova was quoted as saying by Russian news agencies.
Ukraine, however, is getting “worse and worse”, she added.
The European Commission on Friday recommended that Ukraine, where Russia is conducting a military operation, and neighbouring Moldova each be named a “candidate” for joining the EU.
Formal “candidate” status for Ukraine could open up a years-long path towards joining the bloc, with the decision likely to be formalised at an EU leaders' summit in Brussels on June 23-24.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy hailed the move, saying that he was “grateful” to EU chief Ursula von der Leyen and “each EC member for a historic decision”.
