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Russian dictator Volodymyr Putin instructed the government prepare for the return of Western business to the Russian market, despite sanctions and the mass withdrawal of companies after the full-scale invasion. This is reported by Financial Times.
Russia wants to dictate its terms
How to designate FT, the Kremlin is ready to accept Western companies that left Russia, but those who return must act on new termsPutin demands that Russian enterprises received benefits over returning companies as a kind of "punishment" for their exit.
Conflicting loss estimates
Head of the Russian National Welfare Fund Kirill Dmitriev claims that American companies lost $324 billionleaving the Russian market.
Simultaneously Kyiv School of Economics (KSE) gives much lower figures:
- The total value of assets of American companies in the Russian Federation is 52 billion dollars.
- The combined revenue of these companies in 2021–2023 is 36 billion dollars.
Is a return possible?
Despite the Kremlin's statements, the First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov admitted that serious negotiations on the return of business are impossible while Western sanctions are in effect.
According to KSE, since the beginning of the war 472 companies completely left Russia, and also 1360 significantly reduced their presence.
