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Italy wants cooperation despite Russian sanctions — trade representative

According to the Russian Trade Representative to Italy, Russia’s food embargo will incur €200 million annual losses to Italian farmers

ROME, December 29. /TASS/. Italian companies want to cooperate with Russia despite the EU food import ban which the country imposed in August, Russian Trade Representative to Italy Igor Karavayev told PRIME on Monday.

“Though it may seem a paradox the introduction of sanctions and an embargo in response has strengthened the realization that Italy and Russia need each other, that we cannot lose that large-scale trade, economic, investment, industrial and technological partnership which has united the two countries for a long time,” Karavayev said.

Russia’s food embargo will incur €200 million annual losses to Italian farmers, Karavayev said, citing data provided by Italian agricultural association Coldiretti.

Shoe makers also sustained losses because Russian retailers’ orders fell 20% in January-August, and they shrank even 40% on the year in April-June in monetary terms, Karavayev said, citing data of national shoe-makers’ association ANCE.