Sanctions against the Russian Federation weakened the EU and caused protests by farmers - French expert

“It is clear that the impact of sanctions on the European economy has been underestimated. Of course, energy immediately comes to mind. The economic crisis that Germany is currently experiencing and the inflation that the countries of the European Union are suffering from are largely explained by the sharp rise in energy prices,” - he noted.

According to Sapir, restrictive measures against Russia led to protests by farmers in European countries. “One example is the protests of farmers, which began in Germany and have now spread to France and other countries. A significant part of the current discontent of European farmers is associated with sanctions, or more precisely with the severance of trade relations with Russia,” the economist said.

He stressed that the reason for this dissatisfaction is the increasing cost of farming. “This refers to the increase in prices for diesel fuel, which was largely imported from Russia. We should also not forget about the increase in the cost of fertilizers that were supplied from Russia or made from chemicals imported from the Russian Federation. The United States, for example, was careful here and did not ban import of Russian fertilizers,” the expert said.

As Sapir noted, “the increase in gas prices caused by the EU sanctions policy has led to a significant increase in the cost of any product whose production process is energy-intensive, as was the case with dairy products, which require high energy costs due to the need to pasteurize them.”

Damage to budgets

In addition to the direct consequences of anti-Russian restrictive measures in the form of rising prices, Sapir continues, there are also indirect ones, which “were not understood and calculated when making the decision to impose sanctions.” “If food prices rise, as they have for a year and a half now, then demand for other consumer goods falls as households are forced to spend more on food and less on everything else. The fall in consumption of industrial goods that we are seeing in Germany, Italy and France also means a decrease in the influx of taxes for the state. Thus, public finances suffer and will continue to suffer,” he said.

Ultimately, the EU's trade gap with Russia led to a strong weakening of the European economies. “First, direct, and then indirect effects caused by a sharp reduction in trade with Russia as a result of sanctions, significantly weakened the economies of European countries,” the expert concluded.

On December 18, the European Union approved the 12th package of sanctions imposed against Russia due to a special military operation in Ukraine. It, among other things, includes a ban on the import of jewelry diamonds from the Russian Federation into the countries of the community. It applies to both diamonds of Russian origin and jewelry stones transiting through Russia. A ban is also being introduced on the import from the Russian Federation of liquefied propane, copper and aluminum wire and pipes, lithium batteries, thermostats for electric motors and servos for drones.

Earlier, Bloomberg, citing a source, reported that the European Union began discussing the 13th package of sanctions against the Russian Federation. According to the agency, possible measures, which are planned to be taken by February 24, were discussed on January 17 at a meeting of ambassadors of the bloc countries. They discussed the expansion of sanctions lists, additional trade restrictions, as well as measures to combat circumvention of sanctions by the Russian Federation.