Europe Will Feel The Impact Of 'illegal' Sanctions On Russia

JAKARTA - The harder the sanctions imposed by Europe on Russia, the more painful the impact on the economy of the Blue Continent, as Russia is increasingly resilient to "illegal" sanctions, the Kremlin said in a Sunday statement.

The West said they hoped the sanctions would force President Vladimir Putin to seek peace in Ukraine. Although the economy contracted in 2022, Russia's economy grew in 2023 and 2024 at a faster pace than the European Union.

The European Commission on June 10 proposed a new round of sanctions against Russia, which targets Moscow's energy revenues, its banks and its military industry, although the United States has so far refused to tighten its own sanctions.

When asked about statements by Western European leaders, including French President Emmanuel Macron, heavier sanctions would force Russia to negotiate to end the war, the Kremlin said only logic and arguments could force Russia to negotiate.

"The more serious the sanctions package, which, I repeat, we consider illegal, the more serious the impact of the weapon on the shoulder. This is a double-edged sword," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told state television.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022 sparked a wave of Western sanctions against Russia and has so far been the world's most sanctioned major economy.

Peskov told Kremlin principal correspondent on state television, Pavel Zarubin, he did not doubt the European Union would impose further sanctions, but Russia has built a "resistance" against the sanctions.

Last week, President Vladimir Putin said on Friday the EU's additional sanctions against Russia would only be increasingly detrimental to Europe, suggesting Russia's economy grew by 4.3 percent in 2024 compared to European Union growth by 0.9 percent.