Former Putin advisor: I bet the war stops for a month if Russian oil gets blocked

A former senior adviser to the economy of Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that Ukraine's barbarous invasion could be halted within a month if the West imposes a full embargo on Russian energy, writes the Daily Mail, records Periscope.

Andrei Illarionov said the Kremlin has not taken Europe's threats to reduce energy use while continuing to buy Russia's oil and gas.

Illarionov told the BBC that if “West tried to implement a real embargo on oil and gas exports, I would bet that, probably within a month or two, the Russian military operation in Ukraine would be reduced, it would be halted”.

He added that this would be one of the most effective instruments still in the hands of Western countries.

His territorial and imperial ambitions are more important than anything else, including living the Russian population and the country's financial situation... even the financial situation of his government”, he added.

Gas and oil sales last year accounted for 36% of Russian government spending, meaning that an embargo would seriously hit the Kremlin's finances.

The European Union imports 40% of its gas and 27% of oil from Russia.

Experts say Russia's economy will be reduced by 15% under current circumstances, where an estimated 20 million people live in poverty. /Periscopi