In this article we are listing the history of exports and imports of the Russian Federation with countries that are already applying trade sanctions and embargoes against her. Countries and Markets are being affected by trade sanctions and this is expected to have further effects in the coming months.

On February 24, 2022, shortly after the start of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, the European Council held a special meeting, in which economic sanctions against Russia were imposed. The list of sanctions begins with the financial sector; energy and transport; exports etc. On March 2, the Council escalated measures by banning seven Russian banks from the SWIFT System for International Banking Transactions. The EU had imposed sanctions on Russia since early 2014 and onwards, due to Russia’s annexation of Crimea and Sevastopol.

In addition to Council of Europe member states, other countries have joined the Sanctions, just as we’ve had countries hesitant in sanctioning and raising embargoes on Russia.

Meanwhile, Russia, in response to such positioning, announced and published a list of unfriendly countries, against which sanctions and bans on trade exchanges for a group of products were imposed in return.

The Open Data Albania team has compiled a list of countries already applying unilateral or mutual trade sanctions with Russia, and ranked them based on share each of these countries bears in Russian Federations’ foreign trade, specifically in Exports and Imports.

Based on the analysis, it emerges that Russia’s exports to these countries count for a total of 55.3% of Russian Exports for 2021. So, 55.3% of Russia’s total exports are traded in countries she considers unfriendly, with mutual sanctions already in place. By now, the group of goods and products under sanction is expanded almost by the day. But it should be noted that sanctions are, by no means, applied for all groups of goods.

In the case of our country, we are on both, the list of countries who have announced sanctions, as well as in the list the Russian Federation has declared unfriendly countries. Our country imported from Russia in 2021 goods worth a total 132.5 million USD. While our exports to the Russian Federation are estimated in the amount of 16.86 million USD.

The country with the most exports from the Russian Federation, i.e. the destination of Russian Exports, is the Netherlands with 8.58% of total Russian Exports, followed by Germany, United Kingdom, Italy and USA.

When we analyze the imports to Russia, it turns out that for 2021, there are a total of 50.7% of Russia’s imports originating from unfriendly and under mutual sanctions countries.

Germany is the main country of Origin from which the Russian Federation (according to indicator 2021) imports, among those it applies mutual sanctions. Germany is followed by the US, South Korea, France and Italy.

With the addition of new sanctions almost every day, the situation could even lead to a total blockage of trade between these countries. If we talk about the ratio in the Russian Federation trade exchange, the market of countries with sanctions and the market for non-sanctioned countries stands at somewhat equal levels.



Source: International Trade Center , Russian Government elections 2021
Comments and Analysis: Open Data Albania



Source: International Trade Center , Russian Government elections 2021
Comments and Analysis: Open Data Albania

To find out more about the Council’s sanctions and embargoes on Russia, click: Link

To get acquainted with the List of countries declared unfriendly, and notified of sanctions and embargoes on goods by the Russian Federation read the Official Moscow List.

Download excel:Commercial exchange: Russian import-exports with countries applying sanctions
Comments and Analysis: Open Data Albania
Translated by: Rezarta Cushaj
Contributed by: Ilir Brasha