Expert on Russia's ban on EU and US food imports and inflation prognosis

Inflation in Russia is unlikely to speed up despite the ongoing Ukrainian crisis, member of the Public Council at the Russian Ministry of Economy, Dmitry Belousov, told Vestnik Kavkaza in an interview.

Russia's Moscow-based Higher School of Economics has recently published a report saying that the ban on US and EU food imports introduced by the Russian government is going to cause up to 8 percent inflation in the country.

"We believe that inflation may hit 7.7-8 percent, while the previously estimated figure was 6 percent," the authors of the report write.

Belousov, however, stresses that restrictions imposed on imports will strengthen the Russian rouble and thus lead to a lower inflation rate.

"The sanctions imposed on western products will strengthen the rouble, while inflation in Russia is mainly caused by the devaluation of the national currency," he said.