Russian economy will recover from crisis: Putin

The Russian president made the remarks during his 10th annual press conference in the capital, Moscow, on Thursday.

“Our economy will overcome the current situation. How much time will be needed for that? Under the most unfavorable circumstances, I think it will take about two years,” Putin said.

The Russian leader added that the current financial situation had been caused by a number of external factors, including a drop in global oil prices.

“The current situation has been provoked by external factors, but it’s worth noting that we haven’t done what we planned to do to diversify our economy,” Putin said.

He said that the country’s currency reserves were sufficient to stabilize the Russian economy and that the crisis should encourage efforts to lessen Russia’s dependence on oil and gas earnings.

Earlier on Thursday, an opinion poll released by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research showed that Putin enjoys more than 80 percent support among Russians.

Russia has been witnessing a decline in the value of its ruble.

Moscow has been hit with sanctions by the US and the European Union (EU), which have been accusing Moscow of playing a role in the ongoing crisis in eastern Ukraine, a claim Russia has repeatedly rejected.

HK