One of the unintended consequences of Western sanctions, has been that the freezing of capital outflows from Russia to the foreign coffers of oligarchs, has turned out to have multiple benefits for the Russian economy.
The breadth of financial sanctions forces the money to be re-invested elsewhere within Russia, which is leading to new investments in industry and services.
A second unexpected outcome is the like-for-like replacement of western franchises with straight copies run by the natives. The entire supply chain and stores of McDonalds and other brands are just re-branded to a Russian owner. All the commercial, supply, retail and employee infrastructure is already in place. A burgeoning, vigorous Russian-owned retail sector is the result.
The third, and most 'surprising' outcome, is that Russia was never just a gas station with nuclear arms. It had an educated and skilled workforce you have turned their hands to creating new or broadened industries and services.
One could argue therefore, that Russia's old commodity-export economy acted AGAINST diversification, as has happened for a century for oil - base economies. Sanctions are beneficial to re-investment and industrial competence and confidence - if you have an able and reliable work-force.
Note that if Putin had tried to create a similar situation by imposing internal capital controls, the super-rich oligarchs would have conspired to remove him. Now the West, through sanctions, have been the catalyst that performed the transformative economic miracle for him.
