MOSCOW, March 31. /ITAR-TASS/. Negative effects of sanctions imposed on Russia over Crimea are already evident and all efforts should be focused on meeting these conditions, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov told Rossiya 24 television on Monday.
“The question is how sanctions will develop. We must in no way weaken our positions on monetary policy, on the budget under such conditions. On the contrary, it is necessary to stay focused and mobilize,” the minister said.
“Sanctions have already been announced and are in place,” he said. “The most unpleasant thing is that this list may change and we can see some anxiety as to what measures could be applied,” he added.
Credits to Russia were already being withdrawn and investors were in no hurry to invest into Russian bonds or projects in Russia, the minister said.
“We are seeing certain pressure on our trade partners, who are revising relations with Russia,” Siluanov said. “All this negatively affects the Russian economy as well as the economies of those countries with whose entrepreneurs it has had arrangements,” he added.
Focusing on preparedness of Russian banks for a change in foreign market conditions and their readiness to borrow on the domestic market, the minister said “We have enough gold and currency reserves. Resources in federal funds are rather sizable. As a very last resort, we will once again face the situation of 2008-2009, when we were helping our enterprises to settle foreign loans, offered currency aid, joined tier-two capital,” he said.
“We have this experience, and we will engage these mechanisms this time in case of necessity,” the minister said.