To understand how dependent we are on imports and, accordingly, on sanctions, it is necessary to learn what the military industrial sector (MIS) is and what is the world and Russian economy.

The military industrial sector today includes about two thousand organizations and high technology enterprises located in 64 regions of the Russian Federation. It employs more than two million people - highly qualified workers, engineers and scientists.

Despite the fact that the enterprises of the military industrial sector today provide only about six percent of industrial production it is still the most knowledge-intensive sector of the national economy. It provides production of 70 percent of communications equipment, 60 percent of complex medical equipment, 30 percent of equipment for the fuel and energy sector. It accounts for more than 70 percent of all scientific products in Russia. It employs more than 50 percent of all research workers. Therefore the military industrial sector is not only a huge expense, but also the engine of progress, the focus of high technology.

The imposition of sanctions restricting the activities of the military industrial sector usually provokes the opposite effect, namely: the mobilization of intellectual, industrial and financial resources of the country.

There examples are historic examples. At one time, the Soviet Union had an absolutely closed economy with its own standards, management and strategy. In the military-technical respect, the country developed, relying on its own resources, sometimes on the resources of its allies, and fed half of the world, mostly free of charge. If it were not for subjective reasons, at the present time the USSR would be a world leader, as there is no doubt about it.

All countries in the world, except the fifteen republics of the USSR itself and some of our former friends in Eastern Europe, benefited from the collapse of the Soviet Union in a geopolitical, economic and purely moral plan. The demographic indicators in these states are the evidence of damages. Liberals like to compare the Soviet Union and Finland - they say, what could be the Russian Empire, were it not for the Bolsheviks. Following this logic, it is appropriate to compare modern Russia and China, in the sense that the Soviet Union was now without the "democratic" transformations of the 1990s. Nevertheless, we were able to maintain the potential, and sanctions, by and large, only strengthened the defense capability.

The feature of Russia is that there is everything in the country to be independent and self-sufficient. And if something is missing, there will always be a substitute.

The Western countries remain in illusions of the unipolar world. But it has long had several centers of power, and in the near future, at least two more - India and Brazil - will be added to the existing ones.

The new players are gaining power unlike the EU, which is losing political and economic influence with great speed. Even on the issues of sanctions against Russia, its ranks are no longer as closely knit as before. At least seven EU countries oppose their automatic renewal: Austria, Hungary, Greece, Italy, Spain, Slovakia and Cyprus. But even if all EU countries lift the sanctions, the Russian policy of import substitution is irreversible.

For example, Russia could provide production of 186 items, which were previously supplied from Ukraine. It means that the "Ukrainian" import was substituted by 100 percent in 2018. Rybinsk firm of Saturn has already begun supplying gas turbine engines for military ships. Another example is the engine for helicopters that company "Motor Sich" supplied to Russia.

The engines were created at the Klimov Design Bureau in St. Petersburg, then the project documentation was transferred to Zaporozhye and serial production was set up there. Now a serial plant has been built near St. Petersburg for the production of such engines, and although Russian plant has not completely replaced Motor Sich yet, the needs of our combat helicopters can still be compensated. It is planned to produce in Russia about 300-320 engines per year for Mi-28, Ka-52, Mi-35, Mi-17 and Ka-32. 250 of them are intended for the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, the rest are for foreign customers.

The Problems with import substitution were also solved by the corporation Tactical Missile Armament. For example, some of the components of products designed in GosMKB "Vympel" were made in Ukraine. A new missile (export version - RVV-MD) was created entirely on the domestic element base.

We are experiencing the most acute confrontation between East and West since the Cold War. Washington and Brussels threaten to impose new sanctions. But in Russia there are two basic riches. First, the human potential which consists of a large number of talented people. Second, resources ranging from natural and ending with communication. Unlike the US, which mainly solve its problems through financial monopoly, we rely on our own forces and on the real sector of the economy.

 Reference of "MIS"

There are companies which fall under the sanctions playing key role in the development of arms and military equipment:

• United Industrial Corporation Oboronprom;

• United Aircraft Corporation;

• United Shipbuilding Corporation;

• Rosoboronexport JSC;

• Scientific and production corporation "Uralvagonzavod";

• NGO "High-Precision Complexes";

• concern of the East-Kazakhstan region Almaz-Antey;

• military-industrial corporation "NPO Mashinostroenia";

• NGO Basalt;

• JSC "Instrument Design Bureau";

• Concern "Radioelectronic Technologies";

• concern "Kalashnikov";

• Federal Research and Production Center "Titan-Barricade";

• Concern "Constellation".

The list is far from complete.