The Minister of Finance explained the tax increase as a desire for "fairness" Anton Siluanov stated this in response to Life journalist Alexander Yunashev. According to him, the authorities "feel very good about raising taxes for Russians and take it very seriously", and the changes are aimed at reducing the "gray sector" of the economy. "The changes that are being made are mainly aimed at justice and whitewashing (the economy - editor's note)," Siluanov noted.