In 2022, the European Union paid Russia for oil and gas more than provided funds to help the Ukrainian government during the two years of conflict. This was reported by the British newspaper The Financial Times (FT).
“Western sanctions have too many flaws, loopholes and lack of enforcement,” the FT piece said.
The flawed restrictive measures have allowed the EU to pay Russia “far more money” for oil and gas than has been sent to Ukraine in two years. The newspaper claims that the “business of circumventing sanctions” has been allowed to “flourish”.
“Everything that could be achieved before can now only be achieved in more time and at greater cost,” the paper noted.
FT also recalled that Western countries have cut off Russia’s access to foreign currency reserves worth more than $ 300 billion, but have not yet found a way to realise them as aid to Ukraine.
We shall remind you that earlier the German newspaper Die Welt recognised that the Russian economy was booming despite years of sanctions.
