Russia's economic outlook remains stable, with positive economic growth projected for 2023 and inflation at rates far below those of Western countries, said Minister of Finance Anton Siluanov.

In a recent interview, Siluanov highlighted the resilience of the Russian economy despite sanctions from the West over its conflict with Ukraine.

"On the whole, we see the stability of the budget system. Inflation has been on the decline, and the current inflation is between two and three percent. This is in contrast to those countries that imposed sanctions against Russia. They report two-digit inflation. And our exchange rate has stabilized," he said.

According to Russia's federal statistics service, the country's GDP declined by 2.1 percent in 2022, beating an economic downturn of 20 to 25 percent predicted by Western analysts early last year.

The minister said that Russia will likelysee its GDP grow modestly this year while also pointing to factors that indicate overall stability.

"This year we expect economic growth to stand at about one percent, most likely more than one percent. Our unemployment has hit the lowest rate in recent years. So, in general, we need to maintain the current situation and move forward," he said.

Siluanov added that the government has stepped up efforts to limit the impact of sanctions on Russian households.

"We see that residents’ real income began to grow at the end of last year. This year we also plan to boost this growth," he said.

"This is the most important thing. The main task of the government is to ensure that people do not feel the sanctions so that they can keep living a normal life," he added.