Since the start of the war in Ukraine, Russia has been under pressure from the United States and the European Union to impose very heavy sanctions, and international companies have been urged to boycott the Russian market and leave the country altogether.
However, according to Vladimir Putin, the pressure has not been as effective as Western leaders would have liked and he states that only about a quarter of foreign companies have actually left Russia.
According to Putin, a large number of companies, including from the United States, continue to operate in Russia despite pressure from the US government.
– We never pressured anyone to leave our market. Half of those firms continue to operate in the country as they did before [sanctions]. Some have transferred operations to local management under their control, and only about a quarter have left or are in the process of leaving the country’s economy,
Putin believes that the economic problems EU countries are facing are largely due to the break with Russia. In particular, the loss of Russian energy supplies, the loss of the ability to sell supply components to Russia and the inability to use Russian logistics routes, reports Russian state broadcaster RT.
– In particular, large companies [in the EU] are closing… others are suffering losses. Glass, chemical, fertilizer production, and agriculture are suffering serious losses because they have lost the Russian market.
“Unreliable partners”
According to the Russian leader, Germany’s economy has been hit hardest by the sanctions against Russia – due to the loss of Russian energy and raw materials, which has had a very negative impact on the country’s automotive industry.
Describing several Western countries as “unreliable partners”, he acknowledges that the sanctions have undoubtedly hit many Russian companies and some entire industries hard. Nevertheless, the hope is that the situation will stabilize in the future.
– Our doors are always open, Putin adds.
