At the same time, it becomes clear that large parts of Russia are experiencing enormous problems. The focus is mainly on Moscow, where there seems to be sufficient medical infrastructure for the time being, but in many regions they suffer from a shortage of mouth masks, protective clothing, medicines, oxygen, IC beds.
Despite financial injections in recent years, doctors and nurses are still underpaid. Many hospitals and clinics are in a deplorable state.
More than a cheap PR trick
In addition, Russia is not only struggling with the corona crisis, but also with an economic crisis of unprecedented magnitude. With the global economy plummeting, there is hardly any demand for one of Russia’s most important export products, oil.
The price has plummeted to the point of taking more out of the ground and bringing it to its destination than it will cost. The Treasury is missing out on billions in tax revenues.
Under those dramatic conditions in the interior, Russia makes good marks with aid from abroad. Many people consider it a rather cheap PR trick, but there is probably a bit more to it. Russia has been facing economic and political sanctions from the EU and the United States since 2014 as a punishment for the annexation of Crimea that year. The country itself also announced sanctions.
In normal times, these sanctions already put considerable pressure on the Russian economy. Now they weigh extra heavy. Russia is therefore very keen to get rid of it. In that perspective, it can be explained that the corona aid actually goes to Italy and the US.
Coordination and cooperation
Extending EU sanctions requires a unanimous decision by the Member States. Italy is not a big supporter anyway, and the aid may just be the push the Italian government needs to vote against renewal. More or less the same applies to the US. President Trump would rather see sanctions come to an end today than tomorrow.
Russia officially denies that the aid has anything to do with the sanctions, but Kremlin spokesman Peskov yesterday hinted the opposite. We must prepare for a global economic crisis, he said, and facing it requires coordination and cooperation between many countries.
The message behind it seemed: if we want to work together, then sanctions don’t help. Let’s not only move towards a corona-free world, but also towards a sanctions-free world.
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