WTF are you talking about? I'm just saying that people outside of Russia care what Putin says and not what Medvedev says. Similarly, people outside of Turkey care what Erdogan, not what PM Binali Yıldırım says. In short, in authoritarian regimes, people don't care what the nominal "second-in-charge" has to say. For that matter, here in America, people care far less (if at all) about what Pence says than Trump. So it is and so it will remain, whether you like it or not.

Anyhow it looks like sanctions have provided cover for the Russian people to accept increase prices for the survival/nurture of local produce.

And Medvedev is telling his country men not to expect a change in sanctions any time soon. I believe that Medvedev who in the past had been
pushing for self reliance and diversification of the economy might not be in a hurry for the lifting of sanctions.

Sanctions also forced some of the Oligarchs to invest heavily in Russia since their wealth is vulnerable outside.

There is rush on for agricultural lands and the good part is the aim is for healthy products--GMO is banned.

Mother Russia wants become a hermit kingdom? Good luck with that.

Not a la North Korea.

It is huge--from Kaliningrad to Valdivostok--about half the circle of the globe and Sanctions have reawaken the possibility of it self sufficiency.

Sounds like a fusion of Stalin and Potemkin.

It may prove OK if they're happy with a diet of potatoes, beets and cabbage.:cool:

Didn't the Kremlin try to lock the world out once before? Oh, that's right they did. Didn't work out so well did it?

Aim: Agriculture food sufficiency by the 2020.

Great results so far.

http://www.williamengdahl.com/englishNEO15June2016.php

Nope. Funny how that grand experiment in Soshulism turned so deadly and grim. Russia is now one more cautionary tale in letting the kleptocrats run things.

Under Trump and his cronies we're in for it too, I fear.

Trumplethinskin may have done me a favour, the pipeline EO seems to have sent the $CDN higher, like getting a raise in my pension.