Russia is global not regional power: parliamentarian

Russia is a global power not a regional one, a senior Russian parliamentarian said Wednesday.

"The world is not unipolar. No country can today impose its will on other countries. Like it or not, Russia was, is and will be a global power," Valentina Matviyenko, chairperson of the Federal Council, or upper house of the parliament, told reporters.

Responding to comments by U.S. President Barack Obama that Russia was now only a regional power, she said Russia strongly influenced world affairs and played an important role in the global economy.

After the Nuclear Security Summit in Hague, Obama on Tuesday argued Russia's absorption of Crimea was a manifestation of losing influence and indicated less influence, not more.

Matviyenko said Obama's remarks were "signs of panic and agony."

"Remarks of that kind speaks about utterly inadequate understanding of what has been going on in Ukraine, a lack of will to admit serious blunders made (by Washington), which has thrown Ukraine into chaos," she said.

It was impossible to take seriously such remarks, she said.

The chairperson said Western sanctions against Moscow only made Russia stronger. She called these sanctions "a boomerang" and insisted they would mobilize Russia.

"The situation (in Russia) is stable and quiet. There is no panic, no negative results. The economy is stable and it works," she said.