Russia and Europe both have endured losses as a result of the sanctions standoff, but the losses that Europe has encountered are far more serious in some respects, Russian President Vladimir Putin noted.
"The fact is our partners also lose approximately the same. Europe has lost roughly the same, according to their estimates. Actually, they’ve been losing even more sensitive things," he told TASS in an interview for the special project "20 Questions with Vladimir Putin".
As an example, he pointed to job cuts in European countries, brought on by dwindling trade with Russia. "Right now, we have the lowest unemployment in history. Here, we lost nothing," he said, noting that the sanctions were having adverse effects on both sides.
"It is bad because it is distorting the entire global and European economic space. Competition should be natural without any external restrictions," he stressed.
