The current economic situation in Russia is far from ideal, but stability is the foundation for development, Russian President Vladimir Putin said.
Putin compared the current climate with the situation back in 2000, when 42 million Russians lived below the poverty line and public debt stood at $145 billion, and the gold and foreign exchange reserves totaled a meager $12.5 billion.
"There was no end in sight, it was unclear how to sort it out," he said in an interview for the TASS project entitled "20 Questions with Vladimir Putin".
"Pensions and real incomes have risen considerably, while those living below the poverty line totaled 13.5 million, two-thirds less than 20 years ago," the Russian head of state noted.
"This does not mean that everything is fine today. Not at all. On the contrary," the president stressed. "People don’t make comparisons with what it was like before, when it was bad, but rather with how good it is supposed to be in the future. When they see that their desires are not fulfilled, they feel let down. Frankly speaking, I agree with this perspective."
Putin shared his vision of the difference between economic stability and stagnation. "All in all, stability is always the foundation for development, while stagnation is basically backpedaling, without any development. That is the main difference," the Russian leader concluded.
