Russian-German Economic Relations in the Context of the Deepening Political Confrontation Between the Russian Federation and the European Union

Abstract

Relevance. Today, Russian-German economic relations, on the one hand, are developing in the context of Russia ‒ EU relations, and on the other hand, between the Russian Federation and Germany, but they are weighed down by the influence of political factors. The traditional areas of economic cooperation received their first cracks due to the introduction of sanctions in 2014, but the “fourth” package of sanctions in March 2022 from the EU, which was successfully joined by the Scholz government, disrupted the world economic ties between countries that had been established for decades.The purpose is to assess the economic cooperation between Russia and Germany, taking into account the complicated political relations between the EU and the Russian Federation.Objectives: identify priority areas of cooperation between Russia and Germany at the present stage; highlight the constraining factors of economic relations between countries.Methods. A discursive analysis of the official statements of the heads of government was applied to study the qualitative and quantitative indicators of cooperation between the Russian Federation and Germany. The secondary statistical data obtained on the basis of the gravity modeling approach are analyzed.Results. The study showed that one of the most effectively developing industries is the investment of German companies in enterprises of Russian regions. The sanctions of the EU countries had a negative impact on certain high-tech sectors of the Russian economy, but Russian counter-sanctions on meat, milk and dairy products, as well as fruits and vegetables "hit" the consumer in the EU countries and Germany. The forecast of trade and economic relations in connection with the upcoming "fifth" package of EU sanctions against the Russian Federation is difficult.Conclusions. Germany occupied a significant place in trade, economic and investment cooperation with Russia. At the moment, unfounded accusations of Russia that our country is a “threat” to the European Union continue to be unraveled. Germany actively supports the EU in its course towards the introduction of new sanctions measures against the Russian Federation.