The Russian economy was thought to be collapsing under the weight of sanctions imposed by the United States and the European Union, but the country's national income today is barely 1 percent higher than it was before the invasion of Ukraine. Moscow has found alternative customers for its raw materials. 90 percent of it sells oil to India and China. The first country's example is particularly stark. India's imports of Russian fuels have increased 13-fold in the last two years to reach USD 37 billion by 2023. It contributed significantly to the Russian budget's huge revenue ($320 billion), almost 40 percent of it. Designed for military expenditure.
How Russia Learned to Ignore Western Sanctions
Russia is gradually making progress in avoiding sanctions. For example, it has created a “grey” fleet of tankers that escape international control. Last year they provided more than 70 percent. Russian fuel exports. Thanks to this, the maximum price for Russian oil imposed by Brussels and Washington is $60. A barrel is easily ignored by Moscow when collected by countries that do not use sanctions.
The United States and the European Union were able to convince only a small number of countries to join the sanctions against Russia. Besides Canada and Australia, these include: Japan or South Korea. The majority of countries in Latin America, Africa and Asia refused to show solidarity with the Ukrainians. This can be seen in aviation: outside the West, Russians can fly freely everywhere. For this reason, Turkey, Egypt and Thailand have become a Mecca for Russian visitors: last year alone, the traffic of tourists from Russia increased by 50%. It was a significant victory for Putin. Despite the hundreds of thousands of deaths in the war with Ukraine, it helps maintain the impression that everyday life for the average Russian has changed little. Thanks to this, popular support for the regime is relatively high. Countries like Turkey and Kazakhstan also contribute to this in their own way and have become an intermediary in the purchase of Western consumer goods that reach the store shelves in Moscow and St. Petersburg.
