Sanctions empty Russian shops: 'It will never be the same again'

Empty shelves: sugar is disappearing, a salad costs the same as a plate of oysters, and meat is now like gold. The authorities tell citizens that aid will arrive from China and Belarus. For the Russians, the current crisis is worse than the Covid-19 crisis.

Moscow (AsiaNews) - In the third week of the so-called special operation in Ukraine, where the Russian army is causing a real humanitarian catastrophe, the heavy consequences of economic sanctions are also beginning to be felt in Russia. Giant shopping malls are more and more ghostly, retail food shops are closing down, a large number of items are disappearing from the shelves: some are no longer being imported, others are sold out in a consumer panic.

In the Pskov region, for example, sugar has disappeared, having been snapped up as early as February. Irina Eršova, a teacher from the Novosokolniči province who is also a deputy in the local council, tells Sever.realii that 'refined sugar is our real local currency, and now salt stocks are also being attacked... the smart ones are stocking up on high-quality tea and coffee, olives and seafood'. Prices have risen a lot: cabbages are more expensive than bananas, potatoes are up to 80 roubles (almost one euro per kilo), and all cereals are skyrocketing. Bread is also on the rise, while baby food, pet food and all imported products are disappearing from the shelves.

A peasant woman from Velikoluksk province, Nadežda Kotkova, is thrilled to have arrived at the supermarket just as they were unloading sugar: 'We did it, we bought it for 55 roubles, when it's over 70 if you can find it in the shops'. The woman explains that "Makfa" flour has gone up to 90 roubles: "I use it a lot, oil is also very expensive, pasta packages have been reduced from 600 grams to 400; I managed to buy a dozen before the umpteenth increase in price, all because of the war, let's hope it ends at least by Easter... in any case, it won't be the same as before".

Other people are anxiously pointing out the growing shortage of medicines, especially imported ones: local medicines do not cure all illnesses. Moreover, all local products continue to rise, such as tyres for car wheels, which in Russia have to be changed twice a year: a change of tyre now costs 5,000 roubles, compared to 3,500 last week, as another local MP, Nikolaj Kuzmin, recounts: 'This is the fruit of geopolitical victories... I would like to ask our leaders what you were hoping for when you started your special operation? It certainly wasn't Nato that raised prices by 40 per cent'.

In Karelia, there is a shortage of electronics and household appliances, but the leaders of the capital Petrozavodsk assure us that 'shipments will soon arrive from Belarus, a friendly state'. However, it is not known at what prices, not least because of the instability of the rouble, which is blocking many productions and distributions. Belarus will not be able to do more than that, and much is expected from China, although here too there are many unknowns. An operator at the "Eldorado" electronics centre is convinced that "everything will settle down, maybe in a year or two".

Even those who work for foreign companies, such as Adidas or McDonald's, cling to hope: 'For now we will continue to receive our salaries according to the contract, then maybe they will come back, they didn't want to leave'.

Sanctions blockades had already begun in 2014 after the annexation of Crimea, and many remember that period as a strenuous but not impossible adjustment. Only there was no Putin's special operation going on, and today bewilderment dominates among Russian workers and entrepreneurs. The owner of the most important cafeteria in Petrozavodsk is a Russian of Chinese origin, Roman Li, and he complains that 'even the suppliers who want to keep bringing us things don't know how to do it, there are no planes and ships available'.

A simple 'iceberg' salad with peppers costs as much as a plate of oysters, and meat is now like gold. The premises are increasingly empty and struggle to stay open, despite all the government facilities that have suspended checks, extended licences and ensured holiday pay, things that were already granted during the pandemic: 'We thought that period had made us stronger, but it was far easier by comparison".