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After the invasion of Ukraine, Russia faced unprecedented international sanctions, but its internal circumstances are not well known.



To see what's going on there, Washington correspondent Kim Soo-hyeong interviewed opposition politician Vladimir Milov, former deputy minister of energy of Russia, exclusively.



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Russian opposition politician Vladimir Milov, former deputy minister of energy in Russia interviewed by SBS, fled to Lithuania last year.



This is because he himself was on the verge of being arrested for running an anti-Putin movement as an economic adviser to Putin's biggest enemy, Alexei Navalny.



[Vladimir Milov/Former Minister of Energy of Russia: (Why does the Russian government keep trying to keep Navalny in prison?) Because he is a very influential leader.

Had he been freed now, he would have been an important voice leader, leading a strong anti-war movement.]




After the invasion of Ukraine, the Russian government blocked major social media and controlled information about the war.



[Vladimir Milov/Ex-Russian Deputy Minister of Energy: This picket protest is causing great damage to the Russian authorities (which control information).

It has a profound impact on the thoughts of millions of people who have seen this.

The more this happens, the more people protest.]



He said more and more people are choosing asylum out of disappointment that the country is becoming a rogue state.



[Vladimir Milov / Former Deputy Minister of Energy of Russia: Russia is falling into one of the isolated rogue countries.

It is a decisive moment for millions of Russians.

We get a lot of requests to help people who want to leave.]



The Russian economy is facing a serious crisis as energy exports are blocked by super-strong US and Western sanctions.



[Vladimir Milov/Ex-Russian Deputy Minister of Energy: We will see a sharp decrease in the flow of money into Russia in the future.

(Russian energy exports) are life-sustaining blood in the military and the Ukraine war.]



He analyzed that the situation could be more chaotic than at the time of the collapse of the Soviet Union.



[Vladimir Milov / Former Deputy Minister of Energy of Russia: When the Soviet Union collapsed, we were moving forward, in the right direction.

For now, Russia is locking its doors and reversing all its reform measures.

The potential consequences can be very confusing.]



During his long tenure, Putin diagnosed that he had become mistaken for anything he set his mind to.



[Vladimir Milov/Ex-Russian Deputy Minister of Energy: Having been in power for over 20 years, Putin has removed psychological barriers.

This is because there are many people around me who unconditionally answer 'yes'.]



He emphasized that Korea's role in international sanctions against Russia is also very important.



[Vladimir Milov / Former Deputy Minister of Energy of Russia: (Russia) is completely dependent on cooperation with Korea to build the vessel.

If such a (shipbuilding) contract ends, it will be a huge blow to Putin's oil and gas industry as a whole.]



Faced with unprecedentedly strong sanctions, Putin is on the verge of amnesty.



(Video coverage: Oh Jeong-sik, video editing: Jeon Min-gyu)



▶ ‘Bombing’ of shelters where children and the elderly gather…

I can't even figure out the damage