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War between Ukraine and Russia All of Russia’s economic and political elite met during an annual meeting on the banks of the Neva River for the past three days, while Russia has been ostracized by Western powers and under heavy sanctions since the beginning of its invasion of Ukraine.
A “Blitzkrieg economic war” by the West against Russia. In four days it will surely be the only time that Vladimir Putin has personally uttered the word “war”. The other, the real one, that of Russia in Ukraine, was made invisible, taboo. As they do every year, Russia’s political, diplomatic and business elite met June 15-18 in the suburbs of Saint Petersburg for an annual four-day business forum. The exhibition center is under high protection and has hosted dozens of European presidents and ministers in recent years. A year ago, François Fillon traveled there to complete his entry into the boards of directors of two Russian oil companies. But for this new edition, the war in Ukraine and diplomatic isolation forces, rarely the representatives of the usual gratin have dared to point their noses there.
For four days, representatives of Russia’s business elite were extremely flexible in describing a war economy without naming it. “Current geopolitical movements and circumstances”, “new perspectives” and even “rain” which could only be imagined “followed by a rainbow”… All meanders were allowed. Then L…