Russia is facing colossal amount of problems due to sanctions, but will not 'give up' - Putin

MOSCOW. July 18 (Interfax) - The anti-Russian sanctions are a huge challenge for the country, but Russia will not give up and will develop even more intensively using its potential, Russian President Vladimir Putin said.

"Clearly, it is a huge challenge for our country, but we are not only not going to give up, be at a loss or, as some of our 'well-wishers' predict, go decades back," the president said at a meeting of the Council for Strategic Development and National Projects on Monday.

"Of course not, on the contrary, realizing the colossal amount of problems we face, we will be looking for new solutions intensively and competently, effectively using the available sovereign technological work that's already been done, the developments of domestic innovative companies," Putin said.

Recognizing that it is an extremely difficult task, Putin said the Russian authorities "are aware of that." "Clearly, we can't develop separately from the rest of the world, but it won't be this way, it is impossible to build huge fences in today's world," the president said.

Among the priority areas that need to be given special attention now are end-to-end technologies, he said.