West will try to undermine us, even if it lifts sanctions: Putin

MOSCOW: Russian President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday the West would try to undermine Russia regardless of whether it lifted sanctions, telling business leaders in Moscow they should look elsewhere to invest.

Delivering a broadly anti-Western speech ahead of a crunch phone call with US counterpart Donald Trump, Putin said the G7 group was too small to see “on a map” and that Western dominance was “slipping away”.

Western countries introduced sweeping sanctions on Russia in response to its full-scale military offensive against Ukraine in February 2022, restrictions that the Kremlin has called an “illegal” attempt to destroy its economy.

“Even if there is a gesture from the other side, like they suggest lifting or easing something, you can expect they will find another way of pressing down, to throw a spanner in the works,” Putin told business leaders at an event in Moscow.

“You should invest where it is profitable for you and Russia, where profits are high and investments are reliably protected. There are many such regions of the world,” the Russian leader said.

Dozens of Western companies pulled out of Russia in the wake of its conflict in Ukraine, while some of those that remained were seized by the Russian government.

While the Russian economy has overcome the initial shock of sanctions and found domestic alternatives to most Western brands, it wants the West to lift them as part of any Ukraine peace deal.

The Trump administration has declined to say whether it will ease sanctions on Moscow, saying only that both sides will need to make “concessions” for peace.