"I have already mentioned this and I will say once again that the last year was the toughest year for the global economy since the end of World War II," Putin said at talks on measures for boosting investment activity.
The global GDP declined by 3.5 percent in 2020, the Russian leader recalled.
"This happened due to objective reasons, such as the epidemiological situation and the need to introduce restrictions, which affected the business and the dynamics of the economy in general," Putin continued.