Russia economy bombshell as Ukraine ready to make major concession to achieve peace

There is definitely some excitement, predominantly in the hedge fund community,

Roger Mark, fixed-income analyst at investment firm Ninety One, told the financial news outlet

If Russia at some point will come back to more or less normal politics towards its partners and neighbours, most importantly, I don’t think that they should be excluded from competitive markets,

he added

We just want at this moment to make sure that first Russia makes significant steps in that direction, then any discussion about the lifting of sanctions emerges,

he said

We’ve seen already that the Russians are trying to ask some questions [about] if those sanctions should be lifted, at least some of them, which gives us better understanding of what sanctions are most painful,

Vlasiuk went on

Mark Ruttegeneral

It’s normal if the war would have stopped for Europe somehow, step by step, and also for the U.S., step by step, to restore normal relations with Russia,

Rutte said in an interview with Bloomberg

Volodymyr Zelenskyypresident

Sanctions must be applied — ones that will work,

Zelenskyy said Thursday

Russia has a lot of potential, especially energy resources, and that would be probably stupid not to try and use it,

he said

The latest U.S. sanctions package was significant, but it’s not the final blow to the Russian economy,

said Shagina

Sanctions can only be eased or lifted if Russia is able to make amends and pays for the damage it has caused in Ukraine,

said Latvian special envoy for sanctions, Āris Vīgants

Everyone must understand that returning to business as usual with Russia is impossible, ... even if some kind of peace deal is reached.”

Vīgants said

U.S. support is vitally important because American sanctions are the most powerful,

said Maria Shagina, a sanctions expert at the International Institute for Strategic Studies

This is the last stop on the road to Moscow,

said Raimonds Zukuls, head of Latvia’s customs service, pointing toward the demarcation line

Theoretically, they could do more, but I’m yet to see agreement across the EU,

said Shagina, the sanctions specialist

Russian energy is poisonous — it comes with political manipulation and blackmail,

Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kęstutis Budrys told POLITICO

We will be invited when we are told to lift the sanctions. The sanctions are our leverage in itself,

said one EU diplomat who has been involved in the sensitive talks but did not have the authorization to comment publicly

The United States is a strategic partner and ally of Latvia and the entire EU,

Braže said in an interview, emphasizing the need to be partners in the face of conflict rather than rivals

We are still moving forward with the roadmap, it is being prepared, but the timing has changed in light of the latest geopolitical developments,

one senior Commission official told POLITICO, granted anonymity to discuss the sensitive issue

Why not replace it by American LNG, which is cheaper for us and brings down our energy prices?”

she asked in November