Mission in Moscow

Russia paid an official $ 50 thousand for a “right” report on sanctions, the experts of Un Watch are sure

Photo: Flickr.com / Alexander Jones

On September 19, at the UN General Assembly in New York, members of the Russian delegation defiantly left the hall before the President of Lithuania: the first deputy chairman of the Russian Federation at the UN Pyotr Ilyichev and the head of the State Duma Committee on International Affairs Leonid Slutsky did not want to listen to Dali Gribauskite, who suggested the military exercises of the West-2017, thereby trains its army For a subsequent attack on Western neighbors. Much more favorably, Russian representatives perceived the report of the UN special representative, Algeria Idris Jazairi, published a few days before the General Assembly. Having visited a business trip in Moscow, he came to the conclusion that the sanctions imposed by the United States and the EU against the Kremlin after the annexation of Crimea are more expensive than Russia.

Warm reception

Jazairi was the first to react to the non -governmental organization Un Watch , which monitors the effectiveness of the UN - it accused the international official of receiving $ 50 thousand from Moscow. Information about the amount that seemed to be a suspicious un Watch, can be found in the annual reporting report of the UN Human Rights (p. 37) on external support, which is received by external support, which is received by external support, which is received Special speakers of the UN and groups working on a specific topic.

The money that came to Idris Jazairi was awarded in the column “Target financing of donor countries through UVKPH” ( UVKPH-the Office of the UN Human Rights of Human Rights. -NT).

Exactly the same amount - $ 50 thousand - officially received in 2016 from Russia through UVKPH for various projects of several more special lines.

The fully position of Idris Jazairi in the dry language of international diplomacy is called “a special speaker on the issue of negative impact of unilateral forced measures to exercise human rights”. It was in this capacity that he visited Russia from April 24 to 28, 2017. The purpose of the trip, as indicated in his report , is to “evaluate the negative impact” on the lives of people in Russia sanctions introduced after the annexation of Crimea in 2014 of the United States, the EU and some other countries. Jazairi appreciated.

But the "impact" turned out not so negative.

Everything is calm in Russia

In Moscow, Jazairi accepted warmth. He met with Russian officials who later expressed his “gratitude for invitation and support” in the report, with businessmen, civil community representatives, experts and scientists. But to meet with representatives of the United States, the EU and a number of European countries, Jazairi, as he writes in Preambul to his report, "despite requests, failed."

Meanwhile, the conclusions to which Jazairi comes in his report are surprisingly similar to the standard rhetoric of Russian officials. Jazairi, for example, believes that Western sanctions were not effective, since Russia - “a relatively prosperous country with diverse resources, highly qualified population and numerous trading partners” showed an example of “expected adaptability”. In addition, since the sanctions coincided with a drop in oil prices, it is generally difficult to determine what the Russian economy was more affected by. “According to gross estimates, the unfavorable impact of sanctions on the Russian Federation, if you try to separate it from the“ oil shock ”, is expressed in losses, which are an average of 1% of GDP,” the document says. - <...> a total of $ 55 billion today. "

Photo: Unphoto / Eskinder_debebe

This assessment of the specialist diverges, for example, with the conclusions of specialists from the Russian Economic Expert Group. So, according to the calculations of Evsey Gurvich and Ilya Prilepsky , in the period from 2014 to 2017, the pure losses of Russia from sanctions with expensive oil will amount to about $ 160 billion, or 1.9% of GDP, with a low oil price, about $ 170 billion, or up to 2.8% of GDP.

In addition, Jazairi pays out in the report to the “effective actions” of the Russian government, which managed to reduce the negative impact of sanctions “practically naught”, while the “country's economy has demonstrated stability”. Firstly, Medvedev’s office, writes Jazairi, “very effectively” introduced the floating course of the ruble and increased the share of the public sector. Secondly, the government managed to get rid of foreign money in a number of regional projects that now receive local financing. Thirdly, the economy diversified to get rid of the oil "needle". Fourth, "more attention began to be paid to scientific research, which marked a return to the previous times, when in many sectors, including in space technology, the Russian Federation was at the forefront." Fifthly, Russia is now perfectly without import from the EU, because the government has introduced "effective import substitution technologies."

To meet in Moscow with representatives of the United States, the EU and a number of European countries, Jazairi, as he writes in Preambul to his report, “despite the requests, failed”

The deputy is sorry

Among the particularly injured, Jazairi calls Crimeans, European entrepreneurs and Russians who fell under personal sanctions.

The accepting side proposed to take the speaker to the Crimea, but he did not allow him to agree to his status of the UN expert. Nevertheless, based on the fact that he “heard from official Russian and Ukrainian sources”, the inhabitants of Crimea suffered the most, although “they should not collectively pay for what is a complex political crisis”.

The second victims of sanctions-farmers and representatives of the Confederation of European Agricultural Cooperatives-personally complained to Jazairi that they suffer losses "due to the political dispute between the European Union and the Russian Federation, in which the farmers of the European Union have no role or responsibility, but they have to pay for which they have." And here it is worth, according to the speaker, to thank Russia, which did not act on the principle of “ruin your neighbor”: “Therefore, it is good that the response measures (Russia) themselves were limited in nature.”

The current losses of the initiators of the sanctions, for the most part of the European Union, are, according to the approximate assessment of the speaker, $ 3.2 billion per month. But, probably, based on Jazairi’s logic, it could have been worse.

Russia is now perfectly without import from the EU, because the government has introduced “effective import substitution technologies”, the Jazairi report said

And, finally, the third group of citizens whose rights, according to the conclusions of Jazairi, were very violated - these are Russian officials, deputies and entrepreneurs. The expert even gives an example a story that was obviously heard in Moscow about how a Russian entrepreneur, trying to pay for the treatment of a spouse in a clinic in the West, found that his European account was blocked. And, in order to avoid such situations, the speaker suggests forever foreseen exceptions in sanctions documents for humanitarian reasons. This, among other things, includes payment for food, rent or mortgage loan, medicines and medical services, taxes, insurance payments and utilities. As for the deputies of the State Duma of the Russian Federation, since the speaker is sure that they are selected as a result of popular will, they should not fall into sanctions lists at all. “Parliamentary immunity is recognized around the world, and it should be for a reason,” Jazairi makes an unexpected conclusion.

Ethics issues

According to the Executive Director of Un Watch Hill Neuer, Jazairi's report was overly biased. “I am embarrassed that your report, in fact, contains a striking statement that the Russian leadership in the person of Vladimir Putin, the Kremlin are a victim, and the violators of human rights - the EU and the USA,” he turned in an official letter to the UN specialist. - I am even more embarrassed by the fact that you wrote a whole report regarding the occupation by Russia of Ukraine, while never mentioning the phrases “occupied territories”.

But Neyer still pays special attention to Russian money received by Jazairi, even through official channels: “Do you think that the UN expert receives money - $ 50 thousand - only from one country that he visits and later writes a report, barely getting out of the friendly embrace of its government officials?”

“Your report, in fact, contains a striking statement that the Russian leadership represented by Vladimir Putin, the Kremlin is a victim, and the human rights violators are the EU and the USA”

A letter from Un Watch did not cause reaction to the one to whom it was addressed: Idris Jazairi said that he was not going to react to “humiliating attacks”. The UN leadership is also silent - there is no question of any official investigation yet.

No official comments are heard in Moscow.

However, the silence of Moscow is just clear. In this case, it is a sign of complete consent with the conclusions of the Oon Special Republic of Oon, whose business trip to Russia cost, by Russian standards, there are trifles.