Ukraine loses billions of dollars due to the financial aggression of Russia
Direct financial losses for Ukraine as a result of Russia’s aggressive trading amount to nearly a billion dollars, Deputy Minister for Economic Development and Trade and Trade Representative of Ukraine Nataliya Mykolska said in an interview with DT.UA.
The greatest loses affected exports to Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan.
“Our biggest losses were exports to Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, where 40 percent of exports was lost. But exports to other countries were also hit as well. If it’s all totaled up, then we arrive at a figure around 1 bln USD lost. I want to bring your attention namely to that this revenue was lost, only from the sale of goods. But we are losing both the market and the associated transport and logistics services. And all of this, back dropped against falling industrial production in Ukraine itself and the fall of exports to Russia,” the deputy minister noted.
Russian trade aggression achieves several goals, according to her.
“First, it limits the inflow of currency proceeds to Ukraine, making us financially weak. Second, to displace Ukrainian products from the markets of these countries, replacing them with Russian products. In most cases this actually substitutes goods. Third reason, to make it clear to transnational corporations, which have production in Ukraine, as well as in Russia, that they should vacate from Ukraine and develop production in a place where unproblematic access to the market can be provided,” said Mykolska.
As reported, on February 9 Ukraine lodged a demand with the WTO to form an expert group to deal with the numerous transit restrictions on Ukrainian transits to third countries, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, via Russian territory.