The tightening of US economic sanctions, as has been said more than once, caused the opposite effect to what was intended - Russia did not collapse, the people did not die of hunger, the industry did not stand up with a squeak. Everything happened exactly the opposite: small and large enterprises began to open, new branches of agricultural production appeared.
Every year (I go there) Istrina cheese festivals in honor of the anniversary of the sanctions. Someone once said that the sanction is one of our bonds, which allowed us to reach a new level of sovereignty in many positions.
It is no secret that the introduction of sanctions was a signal to the Russian business, which in the nineties brought capital abroad. The times when the receiving party gave preferential conditions for business and capital security in exchange for cash flows ended. Today in the West, no one can feel safe.
At any time, a decision may be made to freeze accounts or arrest property for being a Russian, a citizen of Russia, for Krymnash. In this situation, it was decided to amnesty capital - which is what the State Duma took up in pursuance of the presidential order.
Yesterday afternoon, in the third, final reading, the State Duma adopted a package of laws extending the amnesty of capital. This, by the way, is the third stage, in which new conditions for returnees are provided. If earlier it was not necessary to return the funds to the Russian Federation, but you could only declare, now you need to return them and re-register the company. Thus, real money is returned to the country, and not just taxes from them.
By the way, the domestic opposition traditionally distinguished itself, calling for a new stage to be abandoned and not forgiving the businessmen who returned the money to Russia. This can be understood - there is a keen demand for social justice in society, both Putin and Volodin are talking about it. However, very often social justice is demanded to achieve the methods of comrades Yagoda and Yezhov.
What a sin to conceal - for some representatives of the business from the 1990s, I would welcome such methods. But let's be honest: the call to return and not to forgive is pure crystallized populism.
This is what kind of businessman wants to return and return the money if here he is waiting for a small branch of hell in the form of KolymLag?
That is why Volodin rightly expressed that it is necessary to create conditions for the return of funds to our country, and not to do everything so that no one returns them.
“We are in a situation of economic blockade practically, and at the same time words come from here - let's not create conditions, let's not return. When did you get the money? In the 1990s, ”Volodin said.
And there is nothing to argue, in principle. Here are the concrete results of the second stage of the amnesty, which took place from March 1, 2018 to February 28, 2019, - our citizens declared more than € 10 billion.
Another concrete result is the closure of a dozen companies located in Cyprus offshore companies. The new stage, which provides for the return of cash, will be even more useful than the previous two. Well, perhaps, we can agree that there are positive sides to the sanctions. Even more than that.
I remember a lot of talk about how to return businessmen who left Russia to their homeland — they were cut taxes, created conditions, but most of them chose to spend the money they earned in Las Vegas or drinking a cocktail on the Miami coast. Today, the situation is reversed: now the State Duma simply opens the so-called green corridor to them for the return of money, once taken out of the country.
Come back, invest, create jobs and pay taxes. Then rest assured that Uncle Sam will not make you beneficiaries of the velfer in one fell swoop.
The point of view of the author may not coincide with the position of the editorial board.