White House Calls Vladimir Putin 'Desperate' After Branding The US As A 'Dictatorship'

Russian President Vladimir Putin blamed the United States on Wednesday for its economic hardships and woes while refusing to back out of Ukraine, causing the United States government to call him ‘desperate’ in a response to the statement.

While attending the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok to a crowd that included China’s number three leader Li Zhanshu, Putin singled out the United States for the international sanctions set against them, claiming that the country was attempting to keep a global “dictatorship,” according to CNBC.

Despite his apparent anger regarding the sanctions, however, Putin has stayed firm on his decision to invade Ukraine, and claimed to the audience that Russia has lost nothing in its people and its economy during its war efforts against the country, CNN reported.

“We have lost nothing and are not going to lose anything. Our main gain is the strengthening of our sovereignty. We didn't start anything, in terms of military action, but are only trying to finish it,” he said.

Officials from Washington have refused to take this comment lying down, with a States Department spokesperson responding that “sanctions and export controls are working, and President Putin is desperate to convince the world otherwise.”

“Despite President Putin’s comments at the Eastern Economic Forum, Russia is paying a heavy price for his full-scale war on Ukraine, which continues to result in climbing costs – tens of thousands of Russian soldiers killed, 14 million Ukrainian citizens forced to flee their homes, historic cities pounded to rubble – all because Putin is determined to conquer another country,” the official said in a statement.

Due to the sanctions placed against the country in the West, Putin appears to be attempting to pivot towards a bigger partnership with Asian countries, particularly China. Putin will be meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping during the Shanghai Cooperation Organization this week to strengthen the partnership between the two.