President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday urged the Russian government to control car prices as an industry chief said Western sanctions could push annual sales below 1 million for the first time since records began, Reuters reported.

According to Maxim Sokolov, chairman of the leading Russian carmaker AvtoVAZ, car sales this year have fallen by more than 60 percent and may be less than a quarter of what they were a decade ago.

The main Russian car manufacturer Avtovaz said on Wednesday that car sales on the Russian market this year may fall to 670,000-700,000 units, the RIA news agency reports.

Part of this year’s drop is due to the exit of foreign automakers such as Renault and Mercedes-Benz, and a drop in demand due to mass mobilization due to the conflict in Ukraine.

But a lot is also related to lower living standards and higher prices, as well as difficulties in providing foreign-made components after the introduction of sanctions by Western countries in response to Russia’s military campaign in Ukraine; the latest Lada model had to be produced without airbags and ABS.

Speaking to senior officials, Putin admitted the situation was “not easy” and urged the government to look at making cars more affordable, suggesting prices were unfairly inflated.

“I draw your attention to the need for constant control over prices, so that in these difficulties, which we all know, including logistics, no one abuses and does not increase car prices,” he said.

“I hope both you and the FAS do this all the time.”