Medvedev: “Sanctions will not seriously affect the economy”
The Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev appeared indifferent yesterday talking about the sanctions to the Russian Federation because of the annexation of Crimea and states that even if the West imposed more widely punitive measures, companies that want to operate on Russian territory won't be discouraged, as reported by the Interfax news agency.
"Everything will be fine" he reportedly said when asked how the cooperation with foreign companies in the sectors of oil and gas will be affected, if Western nations broaden the sanctions imposed against Russia. "Those who wish to join us in any field, science, production or want to invest in our economy, will not go anywhere, because this is a completely normal process" he allegedly added. "If foreign companies withdraw" he continued, "this means that they didn't really want to do business in Russia" Medvedev said at an event dedicated to innovation in the oil-producing province of Tatarstan, according to Interfax.
The U.S. and EU have imposed travel bans and the freezing of funds for a few dozen of officials and Parliamentarians as punishment for what they consider illegal occupation of the region of the Crimean peninsula in the Black Sea, as they insist that it is a territory of Ukraine. They threaten to impose far-reaching sanctions, even in entire sectors of the Russian economy, if Moscow tries to take other territories of Ukraine or make other moves they deem offensive.
