Buffeted by Western sanctions imposed over the Ukraine crisis, falling oil prices, and a weakening rouble, Russia’s economy is forecast to shrink by around 4 per cent this year, its sharpest contraction since the global financial crisis.
Advertisement
Earlier this week, US Secretary of State John Kerry said after a meeting with Putin in Moscow that the US is no longer seeking regime change in Syria as a priority and instead would focus on stabilising the region.
Speaking with emphasis and gesturing energetically throughout a marathon news conference that lasted more than three hours and was televised live, the Russian president said Turkey tried to “lick the Americans in some of their private parts” by downing the plane.
Trump has spoken in the past of warming US-Russian relations with Putin, and although he claims the two are very different, he says they share a few similarities. “But for now we are going to launch strikes and support the Syrian army in its offensive”.
Putin admitted that Russia’s gross domestic product (GDP), incomes, and investment were falling while inflation stands as high as 12.3 percent since the start of the year.
Russian warplanes have flown thousands of combat sorties in Syria since Moscow began its air campaign on 30 September.
“There is a plan”, Putin said today.
“He is a very flamboyant man, very talented, no doubt about that…”, the Russian president reportedly said of Trump. “I do not know if the US needed this”.
He said that he had previously agreed to accommodate Turkey’s concerns regarding Syria, adding that the Turkish leadership had never asked Russian Federation to refrain from striking that specific area.
Some of his harshest words were reserved for Turkey.
According to Putin, Turkish people remain Russia’s partners, but it is impossible to come to agreement with the current Turkish leadership.
“Intra-political things – his turn of phrase to prop up his popularity -” are not a matter of concern for Russia, Putin said.
On Russia’s relations with Ukraine, where fighting between government forces and Russia-backed separatists has killed more than 9,000 since April 2014, Putin said he expected trade ties with Ukraine to worsen.
Advertisement
While insisting Russian Federation has no regular troops in eastern Ukraine, Putin acknowledged it has some personnel “performing some military tasks” there.
