President Vladimir Putin said the Russian economy is withstanding the blow of Western sanctions over its military operations in Ukraine "quite well." Putin made the remarks during talks on Monday with visiting Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko in Sochi. 

He also added that Russia and Belarus have many areas of cooperation, including in energy and agriculture. Lukashenko said Western countries have given Belarus and Russia an impetus to develop their own economies more intensively, citing the countries' strengths in market, resources and technology.