The export of Swiss medicines to Russia set a record against the background of sanctions
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The export of pharmaceutical products from Switzerland to Russia over the last year was at a record high level, despite the fact that the country joined all the sanctions of the European Union against Russian aggression.
As European Truth writes, this was reported by the Neue Zurcher Zeitung newspaper with reference to data from the Federal Office for Customs and Border Security of Switzerland.
In the period from March 2022 to February 2023, Switzerland exported goods worth 2.9 billion francs ($3.05 billion) to Russia. While exports stood at 3.5 billion Swiss francs a year earlier, this is only the third time the figure has exceeded 2.9 billion.
The growth took place despite the fact that due to the sanctions of the European Union, to which Switzerland has joined, the export of most goods and services to Russia is limited.
Although Swiss trade with Russia has ground to a halt in many key sectors, including mechanical engineering and watchmaking, exports of pharmaceutical products are at record highs, according to official statistics.
Medicines are considered humanitarian goods and are not subject to sanctions, NZZ notes.
Pharmaceutical products currently account for about a third of all Swiss exports to Russia. Since the full-scale invasion of the Russian Federation into Ukraine, it has grown by about 40% to about two billion francs.
Many large pharmaceutical companies are registered in Switzerland, including Novartis and Roche. In Novartis, the surge in exports to the Russian Federation was explained by “a number of factors, in particular, the influx of patients who postponed medical treatment due to the pandemic.”
“One factor was stockpiling by patients and hospitals in anticipation of possible supply disruptions,” the company added, referring to sanctions due to a full-scale Russian invasion.
As you know, Switzerland has joined all ten sanctions packagesintroduced by the European Union after the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
At the same time, it still refused to allow countries that own Swiss-made weapons to re-export them to Ukraine.
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