MOSCOW, April 28. /TASS/. Western countries imposed sanctions against Russia with the hope that they would negatively impact the country, but these restrictions eventually helped Russia build new financial mechanisms, Russian presidential administration deputy head Maxim Oreshkin said.

"They imposed a large number of sanctions on the Russian financial sector, banned Visa and Mastercard from operating in our country, and took many decisions hoping they would negatively impact our country. However, in reality, the effect was different. Russia stopped paying for expensive services from the Western financial system and built new mechanisms," he told a forum.

Currently, 85% of Russia’s foreign trade is served by Russian rubles or the currencies of BRICS countries, while the currencies of the G7 countries have been completely forced out, Oreshkin added.