The Russians leaving their country

Business Daily

BBC

News, Business

4.4 • 796 Ratings

🗓️ 1 April 2022

⏱️ 17 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Rahul Tandon reports on the thousands of young Russians who have decided to leave the country since it invaded Ukraine. Economist Konstantin Sonin tells us as many as 300,000 may have travelled to countries like Armenia, Georgia and Turkey. Sanctions have made it harder to do business and the weaker rouble has devalued assets. Two businessmen, now living in exile, tell their stories, and we also hear from those who’ve chosen to stay, like Moscow journalist Tatyana Felgenhauer. Plus, former Russian prime minister Mikhail Kasyanov explains the economic impact of losing skilled workers.

Producer: James Graham

Photo: Getty Images

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hello, I'm Rahul Sandin. On today's Business Daily, we're speaking to Russians who've left
0:06.3	their country since the start of the war in Ukraine.
0:09.9	So when I landed, there was so much relief. Everyone was hugging and exchanging contacts
0:16.1	and chatting. It was a great relief.
0:19.5	And we'll hear from some of those who stayed behind.
0:22.6	I don't want to leave my country because of money.
0:27.1	That's all coming up here on Business Daily on the BBC.
0:33.9	In recent weeks, we've seen how Russia's invasion of Ukraine has turned commercial relations between the country and the West on their head.
0:42.8	McDonald's has announced it's temporarily closing its restaurants in Russia.
0:47.1	Coca-Cola and Starbucks have also said they are suspending business.
0:50.5	The financial services firms, KPMG and PWC have pulled out of Russia. Netflix has
0:56.2	suspended its services there. American Express has followed Visa and MasterCard in saying it will no longer
1:01.8	handle payments. As we've heard there, there are huge economic consequences. Hundreds of businesses
1:08.6	have severed ties with Russia. The value of the
1:11.3	ruble has collapsed about 20% this year. Inflation is rising. And the Russian economy is
1:17.4	forecast to shrink by at least 8% this year. But it's not just Western companies pulling out.
1:24.5	Thousands of Russians have also left.
1:27.0	My family actually pushed me out. They told me, hey, you're the one who is making the money,
1:32.9	who is providing for the family. There is also a few more families that I provide for
1:37.5	through employing the people and thus providing for these families. So they pushed me,
1:43.8	they told me, hey, get out, go away.
1:46.0	That's one young Russian businessman who doesn't want us to use his name
	...

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