MOSCOW: Moscow does not expect Western countries to lift anti-Russian sanctions, Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said in an interview with the German daily newspaper Handelsblatt. “We do not expect the sanctions to be lifted. This leads to some problems, but it also creates certain advantages, for example, for our agriculture,” he said. “We are currently discussing within the G20 efforts aimed at countering protectionism, lifting restrictive measures, but sanctions against Russia remain in force, and no one is going to remove them,” the minister said, adding that that this affects capital inflow to Russia.
According to Siluanov, the Russian authorities are thus “focusing on improving the investment climate and boosting confidence in the policy that is being pursued,” which is expressed in “lowering interest rates, low inflation, a stable ruble exchange rate and predictable tax policy.” In 2014, the European Union imposed sanctions on Russia over developments in Ukraine and Crimea’s reunification with Russia repeatedly extending them. Talks on visa-free regime and a new framework cooperation agreement have been suspended, a ban was imposed on entry to the EU member-countries for Russian officials and their assets have been frozen. Restrictive trade, financial and military measures have been put in place. A total of 151 individuals and 37 legal entities have been added to the sanctions lists. Sectoral sanctions against 20 Russian financial, oil and defense companies have been in effect.
