As the European Union prepares to “retaliate, coerce and dialogue” against the Kremlin, as Josep Borrell recently said, figures show that despite the pandemic Russia is now one of the three main exporters within of the European market.
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If the head of the European diplomacy Josep Borrell notes that the relations of the European Union with the Russian government are at “their lowest level” and calls on its members to “show unity to force Russia to discuss”, the Economic relations between Moscow and Brussels have improved in recent times.
Thus, on June 15, Eurostat reported of 12.4% growth in EU imports from Russia during the first four months of 2021. Their volume amounted to 42.5 billion euros. The country is now the third largest trading partner of the Twenty-Seven after China (139.4) and the United States (71.4). It took the place of the United Kingdom, where imports fell by 27.1% following the end of the post-Brexit transition period.
As for the volume of trade exports from EU countries to Russia, it also increased, but only by 7.3%, or from 25.9 to 27.8 billion euros. Here, it occupies 5th place after the United States (125.4), the United Kingdom (87.9), China (73.9) and Switzerland (51.6).
The experts’ opinion
Asked by Sputnik, Russian economist Ivan Krokchniy, CEO of Gerchik & Co, recalls the prognosis of Christine Lagarde, president of the European Central Bank, who told Politico EU on June 14 that the eurozone economy could return at the pre-Covid-19 level in the first quarter of 2022.
“If these prognoses come true, production and consumption in Europe will increase. And as a result, the demand for Russian goods and first of all for energy will continue to grow, ”he stressed.
Loudmila Shkvaria, professor of economics at the Russian Peoples’ Friendship University (RUDN), believes that it should not be forgotten that trade relations between the European Union and Russia are highly politicized and that at all when difficulties may arise.
“Due to anti-Russian sanctions, the offer has been drastically reduced. We are now seeing some harmonization of trends after the drop in previous years. This does not necessarily mean that growth will be sustainable in the long run. The European market is traditional for Russia and one should not expect a dramatic increase. To do this, the structure of exports or, more generally, the system of international economic relations should change, ”she told Sputnik.
New EU strategy vis-à-vis Moscow
Presenting last week his report on a new approach to relations with Russia, requested by EU leaders for their June 24-25 summit, Josep Borrell said the Union must unite to be able to times to “respond, coerce and dialogue”, according to css quotes quoted by AFP.
The diplomat said the Europeans had levers against Russia, such as investments or imported gas and oil. He also deplored the fact that the EU still does not succeed “in creating unity”, that each state has “its interests” and that some members have “the temptation” to “go it alone”.
For Maria Zakharova, spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry, this new strategy reveals that its authors have “problems with the study of history, the perception of reality and the prevalence of phobias on a creative vision of the world. “.
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