Sanctions rolled back Russian economy 30 years – MFA in response to Szijjarto's statements

KYIV. Nov 18 (Interfax-Ukraine) – Statements that European sanctions do not affect the Russian economy are not true, as a result of restrictive measures, the Russian economy rolled back 30 years, Spokespersom for the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry Oleh Nikolenko has said, commenting on a statement by Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó.

"Statements that European sanctions do not affect the Russian economy are not true. No matter how Moscow or Budapest try to belittle the effectiveness of Brussels’ decisions, the sanctions work and limit the ability of Russia to finance the war against Ukraine," Nikolenko said on Facebook on Friday.

He urged to look at the figures given by the Council of the European Union, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.

"And this is what we see in Russia: a drop in GDP from 5.5 to 9%, a decrease in trade in goods and services by 30%-35%; a reduction in oil exports to the EU by 90% by the end of the year; the exit of almost 1,000 foreign companies, which accounted for 40% of GDP; inflation at the level of 22%; the inability to import technologies and components; the rapid decline in production; the depreciation of the capital market," Nikolenko said.

At the same time, he said "the Russian economy has been rolled back 30 years."

"So who should step down: those who protect peace and security in Europe, or those who dilute the EU’s efforts to counter Russian aggression?" the MFA spokesperson said.

Earlier, Hungarian Foreign Minister Szijjártó called on EU leaders who advocated sanctions to resign.