Russians start feeling the heat of Ukraine war sanctions

By DASHA LITVINOVA
Associated Press

MOSCOW (AP) — Ordinary Russians are feeling the painful effects of the West imposing sanctions on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, including payment systems that won’t operate, problems in being able to withdraw cash and difficulty in purchasing certain items. Dozens of foreign and international companies have pulled their business out of Russia. That’s on top of the United States and other Western nations hitting Russia with sanctions of unprecedented breadth and severity. Russians in Moscow and other cities talked to The Associated Press about how those moves have played out in their daily lives, pointing to problems with converting rubles into foreign currency, long lines at ATMs and certain bank cards failing them. Food prices, according to some businesses, have started soaring, too.