MOSCOW, September 17. /ITAR-TASS/. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov on Wednesday rejected the US assertions that the ruble was weakening under the impact of Western sanctions.

“The ruble’s weakening is a factor that stimulates Russian exports,” Ryabkov said.

US White House spokesman Josh Earnest said on Tuesday the ruble’s weakening meant that the US and EU sanctions imposed on Russia over its stance on the Ukraine crisis were reaching their goals.

Meanwhile, the Russian authorities believe that the ruble’s weakening is, on the contrary, mitigating the impact of Western sanctions on the domestic economy.

“World oil prices were seen to go down in August. The sectoral sanctions imposed on the Russian economy have limited access for large corporate borrowers to external capital markets,” Russia’s Central Bank said in its monetary policy report this week.

“The negative impact of these developments was mitigated by the ruble’s weakening, which however, may increase inflationary pressure,” the regulator said.