MOSCOW, February 18. /TASS/. The Russian economy’s non-energy part is growing with higher rates than previously, President Vladimir Putin said in an interview with Rossiya-1 TV channel’s journalist Pavel Zarubin.

"Of course, when we sold [energy - TASS] we received more money, <…> but on the other hand, the smaller our dependence on energy is the better because the Russian economy’s non-energy part is growing with much higher rates than previously," according to an excerpt of the interview published on Zarubin’s Telegram channel.

Russia’s economy is coping with the loss of such a consumer of energy resources as Germany, Putin noted.