DISINFO: Sanctions actually help Russia
SUMMARY
In fact, sanctions imposed on Russia are helping it. It is going to help end the dependence on others and solidify Russian solidarity.
RESPONSE
This is a recurring pro-Kremlin narrative about Western sanctions imposed on Russia. Similar debunks can be seen here or here.
EU sanctions and other restrictive measures were first applied in 2014 following the Russian annexation of Crimea. Since then, the list has been updated. The United States also imposed sanctions on Russia after the violation of Ukraine’s territorial integrity in 2014.
The sanctions are not helping Russia. According to a Bloomberg report, they have knocked off 6 percent of Russia’s GDP since 2014. The sanctions played a major role, although other factors were present as well. And the GDP of the Russian Federation is now 10 percent smaller than might have been expected before the crisis in Crimea. Sanctions also play an important role in the relatively small wage increase in Russia in comparison to other countries in 2019.
Most research supports the view that sanctions have worked as planned, noting the drag they have imposed on Russia’s general economic development since 2014. This adverse effect most likely operates by depressing both foreign trade and foreign capital flows into Russia. Or as The Washington Post said: "The sanctions have stunted Russian economic growth and sapped the urban middle class of wealth and opportunity." Russia’s own counter-sanctions have also had a clear negative effect on the welfare of the average Russian household.