Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Western sanctions are undermining the global economy and confidence in the international financial system, but they are also creating new opportunities for Russia and developing countries to emerge.
On 5 June 2026 GMT+7, Vladimir Putin delivered a speech at the International Economic Forum in St. Petersburg, stating that developing countries are playing an increasingly important role in the global economy, while the economic output share of Western countries is declining.
Putin criticized the unilateral sanctions imposed by Western nations, asserting that the freezing of Russian assets abroad has damaged the global financial system and eroded trust in the world’s major currencies. He said that sanctions and the freezing of Russia’s reserve funds have had a lasting impact on the international status of currencies such as the U.S. dollar and the euro.
The Russian leader warned that other countries might face the same fate as Russia, potentially losing access to assets held in dollars or euros, as well as to Western financial infrastructure and payment systems. Additionally, Putin accused the massive public debt of Western countries as another factor undermining global confidence in Western economic institutions.
Putin stated that the root cause of current global economic turmoil stems from a transition away from a hierarchical world system serving the interests of a few countries toward a more complex, decentralized, and multipolar world order. He views these global changes not only as threats but also as tremendous opportunities.
This speech comes amid ongoing tensions between Russia and Western countries stemming from the war in Ukraine, which has led to economic, financial, and trade sanctions imposed on Russia by the United States, the European Union, and many Western allies over several years.
Source: AP