国际英语新闻:Putin says efforts to modernize Russian economy evident this year

MOSCOW, June 20 (Xinhua) -- Russians will see results of the country's national projects, which are designed to modernize the national economy and raise living standards, as early as this year, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday.

"The results should be felt now -- this year, next, and so on. This should also affect levels of income and salaries," Putin said during his annual live call-in session.

In May 2018, Putin signed a decree for a roadmap that sets targets for the national development in a wide range of spheres up to 2024, including improving economic growth and speeding up technology development.

The Russian government aims to make "the Russian Federation one of the five largest economies in the world" by 2024, with economic growth rates higher than the world average and inflation at a level not exceeding four percent, according to the decree.

Russia needs to change the structure of its economy to make it high-tech and digital and inclusive of artificial intelligence in order to expand infrastructure and raise labor productivity, Putin said.

In addition, he warned that the United States is trying to weaken the Russian economy with the way it did to China when it went on an offensive against Chinese telecom giant Huawei.

"Let us take a look at the attack on Huawei. What are its reasons? And what's its idea? It has only one goal -- to contain the development of China, which has become a global competitor of another global power, the United States," Putin said.

"The same is happening to Russia. And it will keep happening," he added.

Therefore, Russia should boost its economic capabilities to secure its position in the world, the Russian president said.

"If we want to occupy a worthy place under the sun, we must become stronger, primarily in the economic sphere," Putin said.

Nevertheless, Russia has no intention to follow the example of the former Soviet Union and seek superpower status, Putin said.

"We do not strive to have this status because it implies certain elements of imposing one's influence on other states and entire regions," Putin told reporters after the end of the call-in session.

He said Russia has no desire to impose its "lifestyle, political system and so on" on its neighbors.

"They repeat the same mistakes ... and build their policies precisely in an imperial style," Putin said, referring to the United States.