Russia in February 2026: the most important developments in economy
Russia's economy in February 2026 was shaped by the shift in its oil trade. On 2 February President Donald Trump announced a trade agreement with India, saying Prime Minister Narendra Modi had agreed to stop buying Russian oil and that US tariffs on Indian goods would fall to 18%; on 7 February he signed an order lifting a 25% tariff. The Kremlin said it had received no official word from India, and Indian officials said oil imports and the trade deal were separate issues. Indian refiners reportedly cut back while China's imports of Russian crude moved toward a record. Russia's oil and gas revenues were projected to halve year on year in February, and Russian oil traded at its widest discount since 2023. The central bank cut its key rate to 15.5%.
The second theme was control of online communication. Roskomnadzor began slowing Telegram on 10 February for non-compliance with data laws, and Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed the action. On 12 February Russia blocked WhatsApp and promoted a state-backed alternative. Officials later said Telegram had ignored about 150,000 removal requests but that a full block was not under discussion, then said it could be blocked in April; a consideration of declaring it an extremist organization was also reported. On 20 February Putin signed a law allowing telecom operators to cut communications at the request of the FSB.
Sanctions and energy disputes with Europe formed a third theme. The EU presented its 20th sanctions package on 6 February, targeting Russian oil, but on 22 and 23 February Hungary blocked new sanctions and EU funds for Ukraine, citing a dispute over oil transit through the Druzhba pipeline. Hungary and Slovakia said Ukraine was blocking supplies; Russia told Hungary the pipeline damage had been repaired. Hungary and Slovakia announced a halt to diesel shipments to Ukraine. The EU did not win G7 backing for restrictions on Russian oil.
SpaceX disabled Starlink terminals used by Russian forces in Ukraine, which a senior Russian official acknowledged had been down for two weeks. On 28 February Russian flights to Iran, Israel and Dubai were suspended or disrupted.
by WorldBrief & Maksim Micheliov | AI-generated summary
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