Sanctions imposed on Russia are mutually destructive, Putin says

Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned that Western sanctions against his country could backfire.

Speaking in an interview with German ARD television broadcast Saturday as he was attending the Group of 20 summit in Brisbane, Australia, Putin said that cutting Russian access to capital markets would hurt Western exports.

"If the resources of our financial institutions are cut off, they can extend fewer loans to the Russian companies that work with German partners," he said. "Sooner or later, it will begin to affect you as much as us."