Putin hits back at new sanctions: 'No one will succeed in intimidating us'

Russian President Vladimir Putin said new sanctions from the European Union and United States were put in place, "just for the mere fact that we exist."

"Obviously, no one will succeed in intimidating us, to deter, to isolate Russia," he added in remarks reported by Reuters.

The U.S. and EU both instated tighter sanctions against Crimean investments this week, and Canada has redoubled its own sanctions against Moscow. Russia's economy is on tenuous ground; plummeting global oil prices, combined with the sanctions, have caused the ruble to lose more than 40 percent of its year-to-date value. Experts anticipate a recession to grip the country by early 2015.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

But the Kremlin did not back down in its most recent statements.

"It is sad that the countries which call themselves democratic resort to such methods in the 21st century," a ministry statement read on Saturday. "Meanwhile, we will work on retaliatory measures."