Russian PM vows to protect economy from impact of Western sanctions

MOSCOW - Russian Prime Ministry Dmitry Medevdev said Tuesday that the Russian economy is facing urgent challenges and it is necessary to keep the economy from being negatively impacted by a new round of Western sanctions.

Despite the currently positive economic growth, many urgent tasks have remained to be resolved, especially given the situation connected with another round of anti-Russian sanctions, such as pressure measures taken against Russian companies, Medvedev said at a meeting with members of the board of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs.

"It is obvious that we must not allow the good sprouts of our economy to fall under the negative effects of sanctions ... We are well aware that these are illegitimate ways of resolving political problem with economic means," Medvedev said.

He added that unfair competition is "simply unacceptable" in the legal sense, which does not only put pressure on Russian companies operating domestically but also on foreign markets.

The prime minister again stressed that Russia will support the companies that are on the sanctions list.

Earlier this month, the US Treasury announced it had imposed new sanctions on 38 Russian individuals and entities, including seven business leaders and 17 senior officials, for their alleged "malign activities" around the world.

In response, Medvedev said Moscow is mulling countermeasures possibly targeting US securities and businesses while working out proposals on providing support to companies affected by the sanctions, including those in the metals, energy and defense sectors.