MOSCOW, July 29. /TASS/. The countries of the collective West have imposed about 20,000 sanctions against Russia's economy, Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Pankin told a round table in the Federation Council’s upper house of parliament.

"About 20,000 various restrictive sanctions have already been imposed on Russia. Actually, they cannot be called sanctions, because sanctions are a legitimate measure introduced by the [UN] Security Council, while these are unilateral restrictive measures," the diplomat said.

According to Pankin, this never-ending sanctions campaign carried out by the US and the EU is aimed at making Russia "weak," to the point of "collapse". "These expectations are not materializing despite being accompanied by a powerful disinformation campaign waged using all means available," the senior diplomat said.