Putin: Russian Budget Must Remain Balanced in Face of Situation on Global, Financial Markets

Kremlin earlier stated that despite doomsday scenarios advertised by Western politicians this spring, new anti-Russia sanctions had failed to disrupt the Russian economy.

The Russian budget must remain balanced in the coming three years for the country to implement its plans for modernizing its economy, President Vladimir Putin has stated during a cabinet meeting.

The President further emphasized the need to continue boosting the infrastructure in the country and help its regions develop. At the same time, achieving these goals requires strict oversight over how the country's coffers are filled, he added.

"I would like to emphasize that when drafting the federal budget, one, of course, must take into account the factors that directly affect the government revenues. I mean the domestic macroeconomic situation, as well as the situation in the global commodity and financial markets," Putin said.

Putin emphasized that the recent changes to the markets are long-term, and hence the government must come up with systemic solutions to the challenges related to the drafting of the government budget, not temporary ones.

The president noted that the Russian government had already conducted a lot of work in order to draft a balanced budget prior to the September 19 cabinet meeting. He said that the ministers had additionally consulted with him on the matter earlier in the day.

Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin earlier stated that the anti-Russia sanctions, imposed by the Western countries following the start of the special military operation in Ukraine, make drafting the next budget a challenging task. Still, he expressed confidence that the cabinet will successfully deal with it and deliver on the key tasks set out before the government.