THE COSTS OF THE UKRAINE WAR

Infographic: Eastern Ukraine: Increasingly Costly And Chaotic | Statista

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Infographic: The Countries Hardest Hit By Russia's Trade Ban | Statista

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Russia banned imports of U.S. and European agricultural goods last week, a move that illustrated how far ties between Moscow and the West have deteriorated since the onset of the crisis in Ukraine. The sanctions are bad news for European farmers at a time of slow economic growth and falling food prices in the EU. Poland exports over $1.1 billion of agricultural products to Russia every year and its fruit sector, apples in particular, is set to be hard hit.

The Norwegian seafood industry is also searching for new export markets, especially for salmon. Norway exported over a billion dollars worth of fish to Russia in 2013. The situation is also starting to have serious repercussions in Russia itself. Food prices in Russia were already high before the ban and now they’re expected to increase even further while shortages could also arise – imported ingredients account for about 50 percent of Russia’s restaurant market alone.

Infographic: Europe is Highly Dependent on Russian Gas | Statista

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The United States is increasing pressure on European leaders to impose further sanctions on Russia in the wake of the downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17. Russia accounts for 30 percent of all EU gas and it could retaliate by restricting supplies. Europe is highly dependent on Russian gas but interestingly, it will be braced for any possible crisis. A warm winter has left inventories high and there are surging global supplies of liquified natural gas. Furthermore, most analysts believe Russia is unlikely to restrict gas supplies as it could force Europe to permanently switch to other sources.