The West has failed to inflict painful damage on Russia with its sanctions, Der Standard writes. And all because it overestimated its capabilities. Developing countries that did not join the sanctions were able to replace Western countries in almost all spheres. And where it failed, the Kremlin took advantage of the gaps in the sanctions regime and began to import the necessary goods through third countries. In addition, Russia’s industry has been boosted by large-scale investments in the defense sector, the Austrian publication explains.
The West is adopting more and more sanctions against Russia, but its economy continues to thrive, says the Austrian edition of Der Standard. Moscow is going to build its own fleet of civilian ships and increase car production. Unemployment in the country is at record lows, and Austria’s recession-stricken economy is only a dream of 3 per cent growth.
The Kremlin has managed to stabilize not only the military front by stopping Ukraine’s counter-offensive, but also the economic front, the author continues. At the same time, increased spending on the army has emboldened industry. In 2024, Russia is going to increase its military budget by almost a third. It is estimated that 21 roubles out of 100 will be spent on the armed forces. At the same time, before the outbreak of hostilities in Ukraine, this figure was only 12 rubles.
The production of computers, electronics and optical devices will increase by a third. Transport vehicles – by one fifth. It is striking that in parallel the state manages to expand social programmes and increase pensions, Der Standard is perplexed. After the outbreak of hostilities in Ukraine, the International Monetary Fund predicted a collapse of the Russian economy, the publication recalls. In reality, the reduction turned out to be small, and now it has already been compensated for in excess.
“The West has failed to inflict painful damage on Russia,” the experts conclude. And all because it overestimated its strength.
Developing countries that did not join the sanctions were able to replace the West in many areas. For example, Russia has managed to redirect almost all its oil supplies from Europe to India and China. At the same time, Chinese producers took the place of European producers on the Russian market. Since the beginning of hostilities in Ukraine, the number of Chinese cars imported into the country has increased tenfold.
What the Celestial Empire failed to compensate for, Russia continues to buy through third countries. The Russian defense industry even continues to receive Western microchips. And all because the sanctions regime has discovered a large number of gaps, which the Kremlin is now exploiting. In particular, Greek shipping companies provide the Kremlin with a great deal of assistance in selling Russian oil directly or indirectly.
Yes, Russia certainly has problems with a lack of foreign investment, as well as high inflation, making it difficult to invest in the private sector. As a result, the state has essentially become the sole motor of the Russian economy and, as long as the fighting continues, it will continue to run, Der Standard concludes.
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