Russian
President Vladimir Putin has said Moscow will recognize the outcome of
Ukraine's May 25 presidential vote. He also said Western imposed sanctions
against Russia are having a real impact on domestic businesses.
Deutsche Welle, 23 May 2014
Speaking at
the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum on Friday, President Putin said
Russia wants peace and order to be restored to Ukraine and that Moscow will
"respect the choice of the Ukrainian people," in Sunday's
presidential election.
Twenty-one
candidates will compete to become Ukraine's next leader on May 25. The
front-runner in the polls is billionaire candy-maker Petro Poroshenko followed
by former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko who is trailing by a significant
margin.
Putin said
Russia will be ready to work with the new leadership and added he hoped the new
leader will end military actions in eastern Ukraine.
Sanctions
making an impact
In his
speech Putin said Western sanctions imposed against Russia over the Ukraine
crisis are having a real impact on domestic businesses but cautioned the
measures would cause a "boomerang effect."
"In
the modern interdependent world, economic sanctions as an instrument of
political pressure have a boomerang effect and will ultimately hurt businesses
and the economies of the countries who initiated them," he said.
The
European Union and the US imposed asset freezes and travel bans on Russian
officials in response to the annexation of Crimea by Moscow and charges that
Russia was fomenting unrest in eastern Ukraine.
Putin,
however, said he was staying positive over the prospects of solving the crisis
in Ukraine. "I'm an optimist. I am not losing faith that the situation in
Ukraine will at some point become normal and we will find the inner strength to
normalize relations (with the United States)."
"We
are not planning any self-isolation," Putin said. "We hope that
common sense ... will prompt our European and US partners to work with
Russia."
During his
speech he also focused on plans to revive the country's flagging economy,
reiterating a promise that the world's top oil and gas producer would diversify
from energy exports. Gas and oil exports provide about 25 percent of Russia's
gross domestic product. On Wednesday, Russia signed a long-awaited 30-year contract to supply natural gas to China.
hc/jm (Reuters, AFP, AP, dpa)
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.