“Due to the coronavirus pandemic, business contacts were difficult and the generally volatile situation in the global economy, of course, did not contribute to the implementation of new projects and initiatives,” he said at a meeting with representatives of Italian business.
Putin added that Russia and Italy managed to maintain "at a fairly high level of cooperation on the economic track."
The Russian leader specified that over the 11 months of 2021, bilateral trade grew by 53.8% to $27.5 billion.
RT is broadcasting Putin's meeting via videoconference with the heads of leading Italian companies.