Putin warns Russia could lose sovereignty if it relies solely on oil, gas revenue

Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned that the country risks losing both its competitiveness and sovereignty if it continues to rely heavily on revenues from oil and gas exports to fund imports.

"If we buy everything using oil and gas money — and now they’re trying to cut us off from both — then Russia will simply lose its competitiveness, and with it, its sovereignty," Caliber.Az quotes Putin as saying in an interview with state broadcaster VGTRK’s Pavel Zarubin.

The president was responding to a suggestion that Russia should accept its inability to manufacture cars domestically and instead focus on importing vehicles from abroad. Zarubin cited voices advocating for the abandonment of domestic car production in favour of foreign models.

Putin recalled that such views were prevalent in the 1990s and stated that he had previously debated the matter with colleagues during his tenure as Prime Minister.

By Aghakazim Guliyev