According to a study conducted by the Centre for Economics and Business Research in the United States, this conflict would cost about $40 billion a year. That's $280 billion over six years. That's far worse than many free trade agreements can bring in.
That's why I'm saying that we must resolve this conflict. How? We know that Russia isn't suffering as a result of the sanctions imposed since 2014. One sign is that it turned to China. In the past five years, trade between Russia and China has doubled. It now exceeds $145 billion.
I wonder whether it's good for us and for Ukraine that Russia is embracing China, with which it's starting—