MOSCOW, August 11 (Sputnik) - Foreign companies that want to work in Russia and comply with national laws are not threatened, Dmitry Birichevsky, the head of the Russian Foreign Ministry's economic cooperation department, told Sputnik.

"I would like to emphasize that companies that are still interested to continue their work in our country in good faith and comply with Russian legislation are not threatened by anything," Birichevsky said.

The official added that Western countries use various manipulations to force their entrepreneurs to leave the Russian market.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said during his address at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum in mid-June that Russia "has never expelled anyone from our market, from our economy." The president said that Moscow will not close its doors to foreign companies if they want to return to Russia. The president noted that conditions will be created, adding that the authorities will support the new Russian owners of the former foreign companies in the country.