THE Russian President Vladimir Putin today asked the Federal Security Service (FSB), the main successor to the Soviet-era KGB, to help Russian companies to circumvent Western sanctions and expand their influence into new markets around the world.

In an attempt to hurt the Russian economy and force Putin to change course, the West slapped Russia with its toughest sanctions ever, shortly after the Kremlin ordered the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

Putin, however, says that Russia’s wartime economy has grown despite sanctions, with the manufacture of artillery shells far outstripping that of the West and the Russian economy growing by 3.6% last year.

Speaking at the FSB spy agency’s annual meeting in Lubyanka in central Moscow after his landslide victory in Sunday’s presidential election, Putin said its spies should work with other agencies to increase security in banking and of the financial system.

He told the FSB to “provide support to our companies that are actively developing despite obstacles and that are exploring new markets but facing openly hostile actions” from the West.

“Yes, they are creating temporary problems for us,” Putin said, adding that he had spoken to the government about how the sanctions had affected some major projects. “But everything, of course, will happen anyway.”