Russia's Orthodox Church has welcomed President Vladimir Putin’s ban on Western food imports as a chance for Russians to spurn “Western consumer standards”.
“We need to learn moderation and self-control, and be able to manage on little,” said Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin, head of the Church’s Synodal Department for Church-Society Co-operation. “The time has finally come to choose between the West and Russia, between a free and independent future for our people, or a situation in which we listen to shouts from Washington, Brussels and Wall Street instead of the voices of our own countrymen.”
The priest was speaking after Mr Putin imposed the food embargo on the United States and European Union member-countries who had earlier tightened sanctions on Russia’s energy, defence and banking sectors over the crisis in Ukraine. He told the Interfax news agency the embargo was a legitimate response to the West's “discriminatory actions” and would help Russian citizens stop “following the standards of Western consumers”.
President Putin announced the embargo on 6 August, citing “national interests”. Local media predicted the measure would boost the domestic food industry in Russia, which imports 40 per cent of its food, but said negotiations were also under way for increased trade with countries in Latin America.
Loading ...
