Russia is the only country in modern history to be under such great pressure, Chairman of the United Russia party Dmitry Medvedev said at a meeting of the expert council preparing for the party's new program.
Mr. Medvedev said that "unprecedented pressure from outside" is one of the major challenges of the present era.
We have to give an answer and we are doing it. It must be admitted that this is an extremely difficult challenge," he added.
Former Russian President Medvedev emphasized: "In the history of the modern world, no country has ever suffered such a large number of illegal restrictions.
According to him, Russia needs to do everything necessary to ensure that the country still develops even in the current conditions.
Our people must have a worthy quality of life. We are striving to do that and the country is still developing," he added.
On June 11, the Kremlin rejected the possibility that the European Union (EU) would impose new sanctions on banks in this country, noting that Russian banks have been operating in the context of sanctions for a long time.
Our largest banks have long been subject to sanctions. This does not prevent banks from making large profits, developing and maintaining absolute stability," said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
Mr. Peskov emphasized President Vladimir Putin's June 10 comment on the Russian economic situation, affirming that the overall economy is being controlled.
The same can be said about the banking sector. Our central bank has repeatedly affirmed this. They are monitoring the situation quite closely and taking necessary measures to maintain this stability," he said.
Sanctions, high interest rates and spending in the context of conflict have affected Russia's 3,000 billion USD economy, causing the Russian economy to decline 0.3% in the first quarter of 2026, marking the first quarterly decline since the beginning of 2023.
This week, the EU proposed a new sanctions package against Russia over the conflict in Ukraine, targeting Russia's banks and cryptocurrency networks. This is the 21st EU sanction package against Russia related to the conflict in Ukraine.
