Vladimir Putin gave an aggressive speech in which he said the
West was trying to put Russia 'in chains', while warning that his is
'more and more determined' to defend the country's interests
Vladimir Putin used the speech to take a swipe at the West during his end-of-year
speech in Moscow today, saying leasers want to put the Russian bear 'in
chains' and 'remove its fangs and its claws'
Vladimir Putin
accepted that EU and U.S. sanctions over
Crimea were 25 to 30 per cent to blame for the country's economic woes,
but said the West did not care about Ukraine and was only using the
conflict as an excuse to punish him.
During the 3 -hour address Vladimir Putin launched a scathing attack on Western leaders,
saying they were trying to remove Russia's 'fangs and claws'.
Vladimir Putin said: 'Sometimes I think, maybe they'll let the bear eat berries and honey in the forest, maybe they will leave it in peace.
'They
will not. Because they will always try to put him on a chain, and as
soon as they succeed in doing so they tear out his fangs and his claws.
'Once they've taken out his claws and his fangs, then the bear is no longer necessary. He'll become a stuffed animal.
Vladimir Putin said: 'Our economy will overcome
the current situation. How much time will be needed for that? Under the
most unfavorable circumstances I think it will take about two years.'
50% of Russia's government revenue comes from oil and gas
68& of Russia's total export revenues in 2013 came from oil and natural gas sales
33% of these were crude oil exports, mostly to Europe
Vlaidmir
Putin said the nation's currency reserves
are sufficient to keep the economy stable, saying Russia shouldn't
aimlessly 'burn' its reserves, currently standing at $419 billion.
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