MOSCOW. Dec 29 (Interfax) - The global financial crisis' effect on the Russian economy is rather substantial because Russia has become an integral part of the world economy, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said at the Monday meeting of the federal government.

"Since the late 1990s we had been seeking integration with the world economy. Our integration wish came true. As people say, we slit our own throat," he said.

If not for the global crisis, Russia "could have had much more positive results in 2008," Putin said. "Our dynamics was inspiring in the first half of this year."

"Yet the global financial crisis, which caused a world economic slowdown, had an effect on us," he said.

"That influence was rather tangible for the Russian economy due to its structural peculiarities. We not only experienced consequences of the global financial collapse but also witnessed a major drop of prices on our main exports - metals, energy resources, chemicals and some other commodities," he said.