Russia-Ukraine war will continue to impact global economy for years, opine WEF experts

As Russian President Vladimir Putin's intention to end the war is not glimpsed in the near future, an expert at the World Economic Forum believes the consequence of the war will continue to impact the global economy for years. While speaking at the WEF, Vice President for Promoting the European Way of Life in the European Commission Margaritis Schinas noted that the influx of the migrants from the war-torn nation will not only affect those who are welcoming refugees but, it was already impacting the globe. The same was echoed by former Finnish Prime Minister Alexander Stubb during a panel at the World Economic Forum.

He stressed that the Russian invasion of Ukraine had already started impacting inflation, energy prices and food security. Meanwhile, citing the UNHCR data, Schinas said that the problem has further inflated as the war had displaced over 8 million within Ukraine and forced more than 6 million others to flee elsewhere. He pitched creating a holistic migration pact to deal with the growing number of Ukrainian refugees. According to him, without the pact, it forced the country to act like firefighters rather than architects.

"Europe will always remain an asylum destination for those who are fleeing war and persecution. This is the model of society we stand for. We have welcomed more than 5 million Ukrainian refugees, but we do not yet have a migration pact. This forces us to very often function like firefighters rather than architects," he said. 

Further, Moldovian Prime Minister Natalia Gavrilița echoed her country has also welcomed a large number of refugees from Ukraine since the initial days of Russia's incursion. According to Gavrilița, Moldova has also accepted Ukrainians like Poland but now she too sought a migration pact to deal with the situation fairly. 

Russia-Ukraine war

It is worth mentioning that Russia initiated a full-fledged war against Ukraine nearly two days after Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree recognising the independence of breakaway regions Donetsk and Luhansk. Putin's action came despite the West's repetitive warning and speculations about his ill intention to invade Ukraine.

Since then, it has been bombarding several cities in Ukraine, resulting in the killing of thousands of civilians. Millions of people fled the war-torn country and have been living in neighbouring countries and European nations. Recently, during an interview with a Russian state media, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said, "Moscow is not in the mood to wrap up the ongoing military operations until the goals are accomplished".