Putin claims economic stability as war toll mounts
Russian leader Vladimir Putin claims that he saved "Russia from falling into the abyss" that the country supposedly faced before he came to power. On Thursday, he took 4 and a half hours to persuade citizens that Russia does not have economic problems.
The question of whether Putin, in his view, managed to save Russia, as Boris Yeltsin asked him when handing over power in 1999, was posed by BBC correspondent Steve Rosenberg.
Rosenberg listed Russian losses since the beginning of the invasion of Ukraine, which Western intelligence estimates at 650,000 people. He also mentioned the incursion of the Armed Forces of Ukraine into the Kursk region, inflation at a level unseen since the annexation of Crimea, and the expansion of NATO, which Putin aimed to stop by initiating the war with Ukraine.
"I have done everything to ensure that Russia is an independent and sovereign power that is able to make decisions in its own interests," replied Putin. "Everything that was happening to Russia before and after was effectively leading us toward the complete loss of our sovereignty. And without sovereignty, Russia cannot exist as an independent state," he added.
According to Putin, Yeltsin was "patted on the shoulder" in the West, and when he opposed NATO's airstrikes on Yugoslavia, he began to be referred to as an alcoholic.
"I have done everything to ensure that Russia is an independent and sovereign power that is able to make decisions in its own interests," Putin assured.
The leader insisted that Russia is in a stable economic state, which translates into the country's development, and explained the rise in prices by stating that Russians' incomes are increasing faster than the number of available goods. He could not answer the question of when Russia will manage to repel Ukrainians from Kursk.
