CanadaMOSCOW, Mar 28Canadian supermarket chains are removing Russian-made goods from the shelves amid sanctions against the Russian Federation due to the military operation in Ukraine, the Canadian newspaper Globe and Mail writes. The measures concern products «made in Russia», such as kvass, sunflower seeds and marshmallows in chocolate. Retailers decided to remove Russian products shortly after Russian vodka sales stopped in many regions of Canada. Empire Company Ltd., which owns Sobeys, Safeway and FreshCo grocery chains, began removing Russian products in early March. Another chain, Metro Inc., stopped selling products made in Russia earlier this month as well. In this case, we are talking about about 10 products. These and similar gestures have a symbolic meaning and do not have a big impact on the Russian economy, the newspaper writes. Canadian retailer Loblaw Companies is removing Russian goods and making sure that they are not re-ordered. «They, as a rule, are no longer on the shelves,» Katherine Thomas, a spokeswoman for the chain of stores, told the publication. Earlier, a number of Western countries imposed new sanctions against the Russian Federation because of Ukraine. According to the press secretary of the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Peskov, the Western sanctions are very serious, Russia was preparing for them in advance. He added that they require analysis and coordination of departments in order to develop response measures that are consistent with the interests of the Russian Federation. Russian President Vladimir Putin said that the policy of containing and weakening Russia is a long-term strategy for the West, and sanctions have dealt a serious blow to the entire global economy. According to him, the main goal of the West is to worsen the lives of millions of people. Putin also said that the United States and the European Union had effectively defaulted on their obligations to Russia, freezing its foreign exchange reserves. He added that the current events draw a line under the global dominance of the West in both politics and economics. Federation Council members
