Reuters: Putin expresses concern over the state of the Russian economy.

Putin is increasingly concerned about the state of the Russian economy amid the war with Ukraine.

This is reported by the agency Reuters citing its sources.

According to one of the publication's informants, the Russian dictator also believes that "the main objectives of the war have largely been achieved."

Reuters notes that Putin is coming to such conclusions at a time when the new U.S. President Donald Trump is calling for an end to the war between Russia and Ukraine as soon as possible.

Five anonymous sources told Reuters that Putin is aware of how severely the war is impacting the Russian economy.

Although the Russian economy has been steadily growing since the full-scale invasion, even after the imposition of extensive Western sanctions, inflation has surged and a labor shortage has emerged in the country, the publication states.

According to Reuters' sources, Putin's dissatisfaction with the situation was particularly evident during a meeting with Russian businessmen on December 16, when he sharply criticized the government.

In particular, as one of the agency's informants mentioned, the president was particularly displeased that private investments are declining due to the high cost of loans.

Furthermore, another source for Reuters stated that "Putin believes that the main goals of the war have already been achieved, including securing control over the land connecting the main territory of Russia with Crimea, and the Ukrainian army has been weakened."

On Thursday morning, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov declined to comment on Reuters' information that Putin believes the goals of the war have been fulfilled.

"I don't know what sources these are, so I don't consider it possible to comment on this," he was quoted by "Interfax."

At the same time, Peskov described the situation in the Russian economy as "stable," but added: "There are also problems, but unfortunately, problems are now companions of almost all countries in the world."

Background. On January 21, Trump stated that he is ready to impose new sanctions against Russia if Putin refuses to participate in negotiations. The U.S. President threatened to expel Russia from the global economy if Putin does not end the war – Trump is threatening Moscow and its allies with sanctions and tariffs.