Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that the expression “unfriendly countries” in relation to Russia is incorrect, although it entered the language of Russians within a year, reports TASS.

“The expression “unfriendly countries” has entered our public consciousness and circulation. It does not exactly reflect the existing realities. This, one might say, does not reflect anything, because we have unfriendly elites in a certain number of countries and unfriendly rulers,” he said at the congress of the Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs of Russia.

The head of the Kremlin also noted that the political system in many countries of the world “often appoints to the leadership of people with a rather low level of education and general culture, sometimes they do not understand what they say and do.”

“The result, as you know, is obvious. Their work is at the expense of their own population and their own business,” he concluded.

At the same event, where he met face-to-face with some of Russia’s richest people since the start of the war in Ukraine, Putin recommended that they invest in new technologies, manufacturing facilities and businesses that would help Moscow overcome “the West’s attempts to destroy the economy.” countries.

How countries “unfriendly” towards Russia appeared

Putin’s comments came more than a year after the Russian government approved a list of “unfriendly” countries and territories it says have taken actions deemed hostile to Russia, its companies and citizens.

The list includes the USA, Canada, member states of the European Union, Great Britain (including the British territories of Jersey, Anguilla, British Virgin Islands, Gibraltar), Ukraine, Montenegro, Switzerland, Albania, Andorra, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Norway, San- Marino, North Macedonia, as well as Japan, South Korea, Australia, Micronesia, New Zealand, Singapore and Taiwan.

The government in Moscow also announced on March 7, 2022 that those who have obligations in foreign currency to foreign creditors from the list of unfriendly countries will be able to settle them in rubles, in the conditions of a strong devaluation of the national currency of Russia at the time.

Subsequently, Russia announced various forms of sanctions and punishments for “unfriendly countries”, Putin personally announced on March 31 last year that they will have to pay for the import of Russian energy carriers in rubles.

“Today we signed a decree that establishes rules for trading Russian natural gas with so-called unfriendly countries,” he said then, adding that Western countries “unfriendly” to Russia will have to open ruble accounts in Russian banks to pay for the gas. .

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