Speaking Thursday before Russia’s State Duma (lower house of parliament), the Russian head of Government stressed that sanctions against Russia were not imposed even in the darkest years of the Cold War.

He said that they seek to set them back years or even decades, isolate them from the world, force Russia to dismiss promising economic and social projects and hit the living standards of its citizens.

He noted that the masterminds of such restrictions are doing everything possible to increase the country’s inflation, create shortages of consumer goods and, as a result, cause social tension.

He said that all this was carefully planned. The masterminds of this strategy hoped that the storm of sanctions would destroy Russia’s economy in a few days. Their scenario was not realized.

He recalled that the domestic financial system received the first sanctions blow with the freezing of the assets of the Central Bank of Russia. “They robbed the country,” he said, while expressing confidence in the national authorities in the face of such measures.

In his opinion, it is unlikely that any country, except Russia, could handle such a situation under the pressure of so many sanctions.

He added that the Russian financial system, the Central Bank and the government, in permanent contact with President Vladimir Putin, have endured that situation. Joint efforts have succeeded in preventing collapse and preserving citizens’ confidence.

The Russian Prime Minister informed that payments in the country are fulfilled without interruptions, in addition to the stabilization of the stock market and the rouble exchange rate.

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