Speaking at a conference on development of the arctic he explained:
I.e. rather than hope in vain for the west to lift the sanctions Russian planners should take them into account and plan around them."All the time we have to read reports that the EU and the U.S. are considering to lift sanctions and then they suddenly automatically extend them. I think we should lose interest in it."
"We should stop taking care of what they say about the sanctions in Brussels or Washington. It should be kept in mind that sanctions now will always be against us.""Russia needs to be strong and not to bend under the pressure." In this context, Deputy Prime Minister recalled the previous statements of the President of Russia.
"While President Putin set the task solely to create the material basis of national identity, freedom, and independence of the country in its foreign affairs, it will always be accompanied by a resistance of the leading global powers against Russia."
If west hoped that sanctions would force Russia to cry uncle it's not happening. Russians are learning to think of sanctions as just another fact of life. Death, taxes, and the Russian winter. What's a little sanctions compared to that?
Comment: Unsurprisingly, with Western media and Western officials sounding more like howling baboons with each passing day, Russian officials have had to wave 'bye-bye' to any chance for a sane relationship with their Western partners. It seems that every nation that demands a fair shake automatically turns into 'evil incarnate' in the eyes of the Western elite.
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