Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday criticised what he described as coercive economic and trade practices by Western countries, saying Russia has faced more than 30,000 sanctions. Speaking at the Leaders’ Session of the BRICS Business Forum in the national capital, Putin argued that economic competition had increasingly taken forms that went beyond normal commercial rivalry and had become a tool of state-level pressure and geopolitical interference. Putin claimed that the number of sanctions imposed on Russia was more than twice the total number of restrictions imposed on all other countries in the world combined. “More than 30,000 sanctions have been slapped on Russia which is twice as much as the number of all sanctions against all other countries of the world combined,” he said.

His remarks came as BRICS leaders and business representatives discussed international economic cooperation, trade and the challenges facing the global economy. The Russian president said trade disputes had increasingly developed into broader geopolitical confrontations. Without directly naming the United States in the remarks cited, Putin criticised what he portrayed as attempts to use economic and diplomatic pressure to influence the decisions of other countries. He pointed to restrictions affecting international commerce and transport, arguing that such measures could interfere with countries’ ability to pursue their own economic interests.

Putin also referred to the destruction of pipelines and attempts to block international transport corridors as examples of what he characterised as more extreme forms of competition. He said maritime vessels could face attempts at seizure and that countries were being subjected to restrictions that he described as illegal. According to Putin, these developments demonstrated that competition in the international system was no longer limited to conventional economic measures and could have wider consequences for global trade and connectivity.

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The Russian president further criticised the threat of so-called secondary sanctions against countries that do not comply with the interests or policies of another country. He argued that governments should be able to protect and pursue their own national interests rather than being compelled to follow the priorities of another power. “Sometimes competition is taking some ugly forms,” Putin said, adding that such behaviour could now be seen at the state and government levels. His comments reflected Moscow’s long-standing opposition to Western sanctions imposed on Russia.

Putin’s remarks came amid continuing debate within BRICS over the global economic order and the use of financial and trade restrictions as instruments of foreign policy. Russia has faced extensive sanctions from Western countries since its invasion of Ukraine, with measures targeting sectors of its economy, companies, individuals and international trade. Moscow has repeatedly condemned the sanctions as politically motivated and has sought to strengthen economic ties with non-Western partners. At the BRICS Business Forum, Putin used the issue to argue for greater economic sovereignty and against what he described as coercive practices that undermine open international competition.

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