European finance minister Elisabeth Svantesson conceded that the EU does 'not know exactly' what effects its sanctions are having on the Russian economy, after being pressed on the issue by a journalist during a Financial Affairs Council meeting in Brussels on Tuesday.
"I think we should be honest. Of course, the sanctions have effects. On the other hand, we do not know exactly what effects they have because it is very difficult to measure,” Svantesson said.
“The latest IMF forecast from two weeks ago shows a rather modest fall in the Russian GDP last year and slight growth this year,” she added.
Svantesson was speaking alongside Valdis Dombrovskis, European Commissioner for Trade. The Latvian politician claimed the Russian economy is expected to fall into recession this year, as a direct result of sanctions imposed by EU member states.
"Indeed, Russia's economy was in recession last year and is also expected to be in recession this year. Russia's economy was in recession last year, despite record-high energy…
