We need to find a fairer way of providing Goods and Services to the rest of the people on Earth.Cryptocurrencies and/or Gold Standard of money....maybe the answer to fight hyperinflation caused by too much printing of paper/fiat currencies by Governments and Central Banks all over the World. (https://nomorefiatmoneyplease.blogspot.com)
Thursday, April 23, 2015
Russian Premier Says Annexation of Crimea Was Worth Sanctions Fallout
Russian Premier Says Annexation of Crimea Was Worth Sanctions Fallout
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Prime Minister Dmitri A. Medvedev of Russia delivered a speech to lawmakers in Moscow on Tuesday.CreditSergei Karpukhin/Reuters
MOSCOW — Prime Minister Dmitri A. Medvedev said on Tuesday that sanctions imposed on Russia over its annexation of the Crimean Peninsula had done “meaningful” harm to the economy, but that it was a price worth paying.
In an annual statement to Parliament, Mr. Medvedev estimated that Russia’s economy had lost $26.8 billion because of low oil prices and sanctions introduced by the European Union and the United States last year. In his speech, Mr. Medvedev said that Russia’s economy had shrunk by 2 percent in the first quarter of 2015.
“The losses from the introduced limitations have been serious for our economy, and we are not going to hide that,” he said during a televised speech to lawmakers.
Mr. Medvedev said that the economy had “stabilized,” although he added that future sanctions could slow Russia’s recovery. Nonetheless, he said that the cost to the economy was justified.
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“The unprecedented external political and economic pressure is the price we have to pay for our position,” Mr. Medvedev said. “But everyone, the authorities and our society, realized that no matter the cost, we had no other way.”
Mr. Medvedev’s remarks echoed statements last week by President Vladimir V. Putin, who portrayed Russia’s economy as battered but stable. In a nationally televised question-and-answer session that lasted nearly four hours, Mr. Putin told Russians that the worst of the crisis was over and that the economy would most likely recover within two years.
In his televised appearance, Mr. Putin spent an unusual amount of time on the domestic economy, a sign of national concern over the issue.
The ruble had lost 50 percent of its value against the dollar when it ended its slide in December, prompting Russians to rush to buy consumer goods as inflation hit. The ruble has rebounded 30 percent since then.
Mr. Medvedev said on Tuesday that Russians should not expect the ruble to weaken again as it did in December, but that the currency would probably not return to its previous position.
“Our currency is strengthening, which is good for a number of sectors, but it reduces opportunities for export,” Mr. Medvedev said. “We are interested in a predictable exchange rate, so that the ruble neither weakens nor strengthens too fast.”
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