MOSCOW, April 3. /TASS/. Russia is sympathetic to the situation of foreign companies that left the Russian market under pressure from the West, Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said.

"A number of European, American, and Japanese manufacturers, under pressure from their governments, announced their withdrawal from the Russian market. We understand their difficult situation," he said, adding that their places are now occupied by organizations from friendly states and the most effective domestic companies.

Mishustin called this "an inevitable and natural process in an open market economy" and emphasized that this has happened before, but last year it was especially noticeable.