BENGALURU, India — US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen stated Thursday that sanctions have been hurting Russia, as she and different G7 finance chiefs mentioned additional measures on the eve of the primary anniversary of the Ukraine invasion.
“The way I see it, our sanctions have had a very significant negative effect on Russia so far. While by some measures the Russian economy has held up better than might initially have been expected, Russia is now running a significant budget deficit,” Yellen stated in India.
Export controls have been making it “extremely difficult” for Moscow to replenish its munitions, together with repairing 9,000 tanks destroyed within the conflict, Yellen advised reporters in Bengaluru.
“We see that it has led to an exodus of some of the most qualified scientists and entrepreneurs in the Russian economy, and an exodus of foreign investment. Russia is running down its holdings in its sovereign wealth fund so… the price cap that we have put on Russian oil is clearly substantially reducing Russia’s revenues,” she added.
Several international locations, particularly China and India, have helped Moscow reduce the impact of sanctions by ramping up their purchases of Russian oil.
Moscow has additionally been capable of sidestep some sanctions by importing items from third international locations.
Russia’s GDP contracted by 2.1 p.c in 2022 in accordance with official figures—removed from the apocalyptic predictions from final 12 months—though some Western international locations say the statistics are pretend.
“The Russian economy and management system turned out to be much stronger than the West believed,” President Vladimir Putin stated on Tuesday, including that the West needs to make extraordinary Russians “suffer.”
‘Big new package deal’
Yellen additionally stated the worldwide economic system was “in a better place” than predicted a couple of months in the past within the wake of Russia’s invasion and the ensuing explosion in costs for gas, meals and different necessities.
Her feedback got here earlier than a gathering of Group of Seven finance ministers in Bengaluru afterward Thursday to debate additional sanctions and extra monetary assist for Ukraine.
A senior US official stated final week that the United States and its G7 allies deliberate to unveil “a big new package of sanctions” across the February 24 anniversary, together with measures to crack down on the evasion of current sanctions.
G20 finance chiefs and central financial institution heads are additionally resulting from meet on Friday and Saturday in Bengaluru to debate the dire financial results of the conflict and potential debt reduction for poorer nations.
About 15 p.c of low-income international locations are in “debt distress,” the International Monetary Fund has stated. A file 349 million individuals in 79 international locations face “acute food insecurity.”
Any dialogue on Ukraine is awkward for host India, which has not condemned the invasion. India needs to keep away from the phrase “war” in any closing assertion, Bloomberg News reported.
It was unclear what degree of involvement Russia would have within the wider G20 assembly. German officers stated no high-ranking Russian consultant will likely be current.
A gathering of G20 overseas ministers in New Delhi on March 1 and a couple of could possibly be tense, with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov anticipated to attend alongside US Secretary of State Antony Blinken. — AFP
Source: www.gmanetwork.com
