MOSCOW – NEWS – President Vladimir Putin signed an Executive Order On Measures to Ensure Socioeconomic Stability and Protection of the Population in the Russian Federation.
The Executive Order is in response to massive sanctions by western countries and global businesses to end doing business with Russia over President Putin’s war against Ukraine.
The Russian Government has also passed legislation clamping down on protests against the war as well.
The Kremlin in a media statement says the new law is, “To ensure socioeconomic stability and protect the population, including in connection with the political, economic, and other sanctions imposed on the Russian Federation, Russian individuals or legal entities, and/or the cancelling of business by employers, the President instructed the top officials of Russia’s constituent entities to take comprehensive measures to ensure socioeconomic stability based on the geographical peculiarities of the respective territories”.
The Kremlin says the measures include targeted support for various categories of citizens facing challenging circumstances; keeping social services available; ensuring uninterrupted functioning of life support facilities, transport, supply and social infrastructure, education, public health and social services institutions, energy, industry and communications facilities; the day-to-day monitoring of retail prices of essential goods, medications and medical goods and their retail availability; labour market monitoring and implementing proactive measures to support employment (including retraining and advanced training courses).
This level of action by the Kremlin and President Putin likely are the first indication in an official capacity of the impact of sanctions against Russia.
The Russian Ruble has fallen in recent weeks and there are serious economic concerns that the Russian economy could end up in a deep recession or depression if the sanctions are continued.
According to Moscow, “In addition, the Executive Order provides for measures to meet and eliminate increased demand for certain types of goods, work and services; provide support for organisations, individual entrepreneurs and self-employed individuals, including targeted support in the form of monetary funds and other property, or other exemptions and concessions; support for socially oriented non-profit organisations that engage in providing social services, social support and protection, assistance to refugees and internally displaced persons, or in activities related to patriotic education and the encouragement of internal labour migration.
“The Executive Order also provides for the adoption of other measures designed to ensure socioeconomic stability and protection of the people, including those envisaged by the Federal Law On Protecting the Population and Territories from Natural and Man-Made Disasters of December 21, 1994.”