Russia forges new partnerships in face of West’s ‘total hybrid war’ – Lavrov
By Mark Trevelyan
LONDON (Reuters) -Russian Overseas Minister Sergei Lavrov mentioned on Saturday that Moscow was the goal of “complete hybrid conflict” by the West however would face up to sanctions by forging deeper partnerships with China, India and others.
In a speech on the eightieth day since Russia invaded Ukraine, Lavrov pointed to the barrage of sanctions imposed by the West in an effort to painting Russia because the goal, not the perpetrator, of aggression.
“The collective West has declared complete hybrid conflict on us and it’s arduous to foretell how lengthy all this may final however it’s clear the results might be felt by everybody, with out exception,” he mentioned.
“We did every part to keep away from a direct conflict – however now that the problem has been thrown down, we after all settle for it. We aren’t any strangers to sanctions: they had been nearly at all times there in a single type or one other.”
The sanctions on Russia’s high corporations, banks and political elite have been imposed to punish it for a conflict that has killed tens of 1000’s of individuals and uprooted tens of millions, disrupted vitality markets and exacerbated a world meals disaster by driving up costs for grain, cooking oils and fertiliser.
In his speech, Lavrov laid out the technique that Moscow is pinning its hopes on because it tries to cushion the hit to its economic system and construct new markets elsewhere.
He cited the sanctions, which have included the seizure of practically half of Russia’s $640 billion in international reserves, as proof that nobody is secure towards expropriation and “state piracy”, and of the necessity for international locations to minimize financial reliance on the US and its allies.
“Not solely Russia however many others too are decreasing dependence on the U.S. greenback, western know-how and markets,” he mentioned, with out stating proof.
Efforts by the West to isolate Russia had been doomed to fail, he mentioned. Russia’s relations with China had been the perfect that they had ever been and it was growing a privileged strategic partnership with India.
Simply again from a visit to the Center East, he additionally cited the significance of ties with Egypt, Algeria and Gulf nations, in addition to Asia, Africa and Latin America.
In a single instance of a sanctions-induced pivot in exports, Russia offered twice as a lot crude oil to India within the two months after its Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine because it did in all of 2021, as Western nations minimize purchases of Russian oil and Indian refiners seized the possibility to purchase it at a reduction.
But regardless of Russia’s insistence it could actually thrive underneath sanctions, its economic system is on observe to shrink by someplace between 8.8% and 12.4%, in accordance with an economic system ministry doc seen by Reuters, and never return to its pre-invasion measurement earlier than 2026.
Annual shopper inflation accelerated in April to 17.83%, its highest since 2002.
(Reporting by Mark Trevelyan; Enhancing by Christina Fincher)
