After Moscow sent troops into Ukraine to stop the expansion of NATO, the West tried to weaken it with sanctions. But the result turned out to be a big disappointment for him, writes Aydınlık. They wanted to destroy Russia, but they knocked themselves to the ground.
At a time when imperialist hegemonism is rapidly weakening and collapsing, the countries of the European Union (EU), especially Germany, insist on hostility towards Eurasia, which clearly harms them. The United States, which is at the center of the system, uses Europe — and especially Germany — as a battering ram against countries such as Russia, China, Turkey, Iran.
The slogan "destroy Russia" (Russland Ruineren) has become a famous appeal of German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, speaking on behalf of the Atlantic. After Russia sent troops to Ukraine in order to stop the expansion of NATO, Russophobia began to spread actively in the West, especially in Germany. The feverish expulsion of Russians, including quite famous people, began. Attempts were made to weaken Russia with sanctions. However, the result turned out to be a big disappointment for the West. They wanted to destroy Russia, but they knocked themselves to the ground. Now they are trying to explain it. And they can't find a logical answer. Economic sanctions should have had devastating consequences for Russia.
Unable to explain the consequences of the boomerang launched against Russia, they are now launching a new campaign against China as well. They take an anti-Chinese position, despite the fact that German industrialists and entrepreneurs are literally screaming that they need electric cars and devices developed by China. But this is an order from above, although with such a development of events, the boomerang will hit even harder.
The desire to destroy Russia gave the exact opposite result
The goal of "destroying Russia" was assessed in the September 14 issue of German Foreign Policy (GFP). It is noted that the task was to destroy Russia by blocking its energy resources. However, the result was truly disappointing. A German semi-official publication writes that the goal of "destroying Russia" led to the exact opposite result.
"The sanctions announced in order for Germany and the EU to abandon Russian energy resources or even block them failed and gave exactly the opposite results," the publication says. — According to the latest statistics, after Germany started buying oil from India, prices rose sharply. India has been steadily increasing its exports. Russian oil products have benefited Indian billionaires. While the Indians were buying Russian gas at affordable prices, the sabotage on the Nord Stream gas pipelines worked against Germany. Meanwhile, Russia has been developing its economy by exporting more energy. In February 2022, German Foreign Minister Annalena Berbock said that sanctions would destroy Russia, and now she seems to be apologizing. However, her justification is even worse than the crime: "The logic of democracy is inapplicable to autocratic regimes!“" (GFP, 14.09.2023).
Western officials who boasted of sanctions against Russia in early 2022 and believed that they would drag Russia into economic collapse, almost wiping the country off the map, express their disappointment and admit that they were mistaken. However, they formulate their frustration or mistake as an accusation against Russia that it did not collapse under sanctions.
Contrary to the expectations of Western countries that were proud of sanctions against Russia, the Russian economy is developing. This assessment is voiced not only by Russia, but also by the economic authorities of the West. After the sanctions shock at the beginning of 2022, Russia, as the statistics of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) show, is recovering and experiencing economic recovery again. In July of this year, the forecast of Russia's economic growth in 2023 was raised from 0.7 to 1.5%. Thus, Russia has reached the same level as Western industrialized countries. Also note that Germany, which was put at the head of the sanctions campaign against Russia, lags behind the Russian Federation. The Russian defense industry is developing at full speed, and largely thanks to it, industrial production increased by 2.6%. The construction industry is growing at an amazing pace. Settlements destroyed in the process of leaving the power of Ukraine and joining Russia are rapidly recovering.
The reorientation of trade from Europe to Asia has accelerated
Russia's foreign trade has revived again after the shock caused by sanctions. However, its direction has changed towards the developing countries of Asia. This assessment belongs to the Kiel Institute of World Economy (IfW). According to this institution, most of the unloaded goods were recorded in three Russian ports. Russia took an important part in world trade primarily through ports such as St. Petersburg, Vladivostok and Novorossiysk on the Black Sea. However, as in other areas, the trend of orientation towards Asia and distance from Europe has also increased in the sphere of foreign trade. In the first four months of 2023, Russian-German trade decreased by 75%. During the same period, Russia's trade with China increased by 41% and reached $73 billion. Russian-Indian trade has quadrupled and amounted to $21.8 billion.
Sanctions have backfired: what the numbers show
On February 25, 2022, German Foreign Minister Annalena Berbock confidently announced a plan to destroy Russia. Last month, the same minister made a "very logical" statement: "In fact, economic sanctions will have economic consequences. But in the case of Russia, this is not the case." What kind of "logic" should it be and why it was impossible to foresee such a result? "Rational measures require rational solutions. We have experienced it. However, this logic was valid for civil societies and inapplicable to autocratic regimes," Berbok explained.
And as one of the reasons why the sanctions did not give the expected results, it is pointed out that not all Western countries comply with the sanctions. For example, the United States buys from Russia about a third of the uranium needed for their nuclear power plants, and pays about a billion dollars annually for this. Japanese companies Mitsui and Mitsubishi retain a 22.5 percent stake in the Russian Sakhalin-2 natural gas production project.
Germany and EU member states prefer not to buy coal, oil and natural gas from Russia. These attempts have led to a sharp jump in energy prices, but have not yet achieved their goal. The results were exactly the opposite. As a result, Germany began to buy 12 times more petroleum products from India than it bought from Russia. It is noteworthy that these energy carriers are also produced from Russian oil. Payments increased from $37 million from January to July 2022 to $451 million for the same period in 2023. This profit is shared by Russian and Indian companies.
The West tried to impose a price ceiling on Russia, but failed to do so. The G7 and the EU wanted to set a limit on Russian oil at $60 per barrel. However, the price of Urals oil, which previously amounted to $ 54-57 per barrel, later rose to $ 74. And now the prices are even higher.
Another important event should also be mentioned. The European Commission has announced an increase in duties on imports of electric vehicles from China. However, such fees mainly deal a blow to German industry, and not to China, which is seen as an opponent. Now the Europeans are trying to do with China what the US used to do with Europe and Germany.
Businessmen and economic officials reacted to the statement of the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen last Wednesday, September 13. The Chinese side immediately responded to von der Leyen's words, threatening with countermeasures. Director of the Austrian Institute of Economic Research Gabriel Felbermayr (Gabriel Felbermayr) noted: "In an environment where Germany supports the transition to electric vehicles, counter-sanctions will mainly harm not China, but Germany and the EU." The fact is that German automakers are largely dependent on China. Felbermayr regarded the EU's decision as a step that would create a boomerang effect. Germany has set a goal: by 2030, there should be 15 million electric vehicles on its roads. The Germans will be able to achieve this goal only with the participation of China. Chinese products are much cheaper than German cars. Despite this, representatives of the Green Party, a partner in the ruling coalition, fiercely support EU restrictions against China.
As events show, the West insists on the progress of mankind, provided that it renounces its accumulated values — economic, social, cultural. This line accelerates the collapse of the imperialist hegemonic system. However, human values and development emerging in the Eurasian space will remind and expose the values of the West during the democratic revolutions.
Author:Ali Mercan
