In a supermarket on the outskirts of Moscow, Veniamine buys a bottle of CoolCola, one of those new Russian brands that have appeared since Coca-Cola left Russia. “Coca-Cola was more expensive so I don’t regret itassures this Russian. Maybe the CoolCoke isn’t of the same quality but that’s okay. I am for national production!”
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For six months, Russia has been under sanctions from the European Union and the United States. Hundreds of products and materials are prohibited from importing, dozens of companies and major brands have left the territory. Russian political and economic leaders are deprived of stay in the West and their assets abroad are frozen. In Moscow shopping centers, there are a few shops that have been permanently closed, but Western sanctions have not yet changed the daily lives of many Russians. “What penalties?request Galina, a retiree. We have no penalties! We live as we always have. No one has ever defeated Russia and no one ever will.”
If there is no shortage of everyday consumer products, Russian industry is beginning to suffer from problems with the supply of spare parts. The construction sector is at half mast and car sales have fallen by 80%. But for Denys Shalashov, a logistics entrepreneur, the Russian economy can resist for a long time: “We must not forget that Russia is a special country. Many of its businessmen have experienced some very severe crises.”
“During the Soviet Union, it was also difficult for people. The Russian economy is much more used to shocks than the Japanese economy, for example.”
Denys Shalashowat franceinfo
For the Russians of the working classes, who consume little, as for the richest, who adapt, the impact of the sanctions remains very bearable. Only the middle class, small in number in Russia and often turned towards the West, already sees the consequences. “I love Europe. I have been considering moving to Finland for some timeexplains Dimitri, a 28-year-old programmer. But I heard that even Finland is considering closing its borders… I’m crossing my fingers that the situation doesn’t deteriorate to the point where it would be impossible to leave Russia.”
Cut off from part of the world, Russia is slowly sinking into crisis. Some economists estimate that it will still take months for the real difficulties to appear.