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Kremlin says Russian businesses do not want Western firms to return

Russian business owners still have to pay back loans taken out under certain market conditions, Dmitry Peskov added

PARIS, April 23. /TASS/. Russian enterprises have bridged market gaps that emerged after Western companies left, and they do not want them to return, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in an interview with the French magazine Le Point.

"If you talk to Russian business owners, you will understand that they are ready for everything to make sure sanctions remain in place. When foreign firms left our market, many niches were left vacant. They were taken by Russian entrepreneurs who invested their funds and restarted manufacturing," Peskov told the magazine’s correspondent Anne Nivat.

Russian business owners still have to pay back loans taken out under certain market conditions, he added. "Why would they want the foreigners to come back? On the contrary, they do not want anyone to return," the spokesman noted.

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