The British Finance Minister and his Swedish counterpart assert that the Russian economy is weaker than official data suggests.

The British Finance Minister, Rachel Reeves, and her Swedish counterpart, Elisabeth Svantesson, support that the Russian economy is much more fragile than official figures indicate, and that Western sanctions have begun to take effect. They call for increased economic pressure on Moscow and accelerated financial support for Ukraine, including through the 90 billion euro loan promised by the European Union. The two officials state that, although the Kremlin tries to present an image of economic stability, the reality is different, with major imbalances and manipulation of economic indicators. Inflation and war expenditures have led to a decrease in the purchasing power of Russian households. Additionally, Russia's National Wealth Fund is affected, being used to finance the war, while public debt is increasing. Reeves and Svantesson estimate that Russia has lost over 450 billion dollars due to sanctions and that energy revenues have decreased significantly. They welcome the recent measures by the European Union and the United Kingdom to ban imports of gas and propose an extended ban on exports of oil. Finally, they emphasize that economic pressure on Russia must be maintained and intensified, while financial support for Ukraine must reach its destination quickly.