Moscow [Russia], October 24: Russian President Vladimir Putin said Moscow would not bow to pressure from the US or any foreign power, warning that Russia would respond strongly to any military attack deep into its territory.
Speaking to the press on October 23, President Putin called the sanctions from the US and the West "unfriendly" and "will cause certain consequences" for Russia.
However, Reuters quoted the Russian leader as stressing that the sanctions would not undermine Russia's economic prosperity. Mr. Putin stressed that the Russian energy industry was in a "confident" position. "Of course, this is an attempt to put pressure on Russia. But no self-respecting country and nation will decide anything just because of pressure," according to President Putin.
Mr Putin also sarcastically suggested that sanctions could prevent the West from importing Russian toilets, recalling that US President Donald Trump had imposed severe sanctions on Russia during his first term.
Mr Putin warned that disruptions to energy exports from Russia - the world's second-largest oil exporter - would push up oil prices, including at gas stations in the US, causing political instability in Washington.
His statement came after President Trump on October 22 imposed sanctions on two leading Russian oil companies, causing global oil prices to rise by nearly 5% and forcing India to consider reducing imports of Russian oil.
While the financial impact on Russia is likely to be short-term, the new sanctions are seen as a clear signal of the Trump administration's intention to squeeze Moscow's finances and pressure the Kremlin into a peace deal. However, it remains unclear whether India, a major buyer of Russian oil, will actually reduce its imports.
Mr. Trump also announced that he had canceled the planned summit with Mr. Putin. According to the Russian leader, the location of the Trump-Putin meeting was Budapest (Hungary) and the conference was proposed by the US side. "What can I say? Dialogue is always better than any form of confrontation, any form of dispute, or even more so, conflict," Mr. Putin said.
Asked about reports that the US had eased restrictions on some long-range missiles that Ukraine could use and President Zelensky's announcement of a domestic missile with a range of 3,000 km, Mr Putin called it "an attempt to escalate".
"If such weapons are used to attack Russian territory, the reaction will be very serious, if not downright shocking. Let them think about it," he said.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper
