At his annual press conference on December 19, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that international financial and economic organizations ranked Russia first among European countries in terms of economic size by purchasing power parity (PPP) and fourth in the world.
"We have surpassed China, the United States and India. Last year we surpassed Germany and this year we have surpassed Japan," President Putin emphasized.
However, Mr Putin warned that Russia should not be complacent with its economic achievements, despite the European economy being "asleep". He said other countries were still developing and moving forward.
"Everything is changing, everything is moving forward positively. If the eurozone has fallen asleep, there are other global development centres - they are moving forward," Mr Putin said.
President Putin affirmed that the Russian economic situation is stable and economic growth in 2024 is expected to reach 4%.
"Unemployment in Russia is at a record low of 2.3%, which has never happened before," the Kremlin leader said.
In addition, the real income of Russian people has also increased. "Real wages have increased by 9%. I want to emphasize that this is an increase after deducting inflation. People's disposable income has also increased. In general, this situation is stable and reliable," Mr. Putin said.
The president also mentioned that by 2025, Russia's GDP growth is expected to reach 2% to 2.5%.
"I have already said that our economic growth is largely due to the strengthening of sovereignty. This is the most important factor for our country, because if we lose sovereignty, we lose our state. And the strengthening of sovereignty is the result of economic development," President Putin emphasized.
The president also noted that foreign attempts to sabotage the Russian economy have been unsuccessful. "The economic situation is not only a measure of domestic success, but also a factor that demonstrates the country's strength and ability to cope with external pressures," the Russian leader pointed out.
