Russia ‘faces years of stagnation’ over Ukraine

Russia faces years of stagnation because of the Ukraine crisis and is ducking decisions needed to achieve a new economic model, former finance minister Alexei Kudrin told the Reuters Russia Investment Summit yesterday.

Kudrin, a long-time ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, is one of the weightiest figures questioning government policy at a time when Russia is feeling the economic chill from confrontation with the West over Ukraine. A leading ‘liberal’, he shepherded Russia’s finances for over a decade before resigning in 2011 in a row over rising government spending.

“There will be stagnation, like now. There could be recession. We will be balancing on the edge of recession all the time,” he said, adding there would need to be a “renewal” of the government to achieve change.