Category: Economic Sanctions

Russia’s economy is overheating but Putin cannot change course

Russia’s Central Bank raised its key policy rate to 21 percent in late October as the Russian authorities struggle to manage a wartime economy that is in danger of overheating due to a combination of factors including rising inflation, sanctions pressure, and record defense sector spending. While Kremlin officials and many international analysts insist that

Axis of Autocrats: North Korea’s escalating role in Russia’s Ukraine War

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has accused North Korea of preparing to send thousands of soldiers to join the Russian invasion of his country, and is calling for a “strong response” from the international community. “In fact, another state is joining the war against Ukraine,” Zelenskyy commented during his traditional daily video address on Sunday evening.

Risky business: How to save the G7 deal to mobilize $50 billion for Ukraine

Could the Group of Seven (G7) deal to mobilize Russia’s immobilized reserves for Ukraine now be upended by a risk-weighting exercise? Senior US officials have been invited to join this week’s meeting of the European Union (EU) member states’ top representatives in Brussels in one of the last attempts to secure US participation in the

Belarus’s political prisoners must not be forgotten

As Belarus marked the fourth anniversary of the fraudulent August 2020 presidential election that sparked nationwide protects and a brutal crackdown, the United States, European Union, and United Kingdom all unveiled new sanctions targeting the regime of Belarusian dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka. In a joint statement that was also signed by Canada, the three called on

Ukraine’s fight against Russia gets three boosts from the G7

JUST IN Uno, due, tre. As the Group of Seven (G7) summit kicked off Thursday in Apulia, Italy, US President Joe Biden presented three big steps to help Ukraine in its ongoing fight against Russian aggression. First, G7 leaders agreed to send Ukraine fifty billion dollars that will be paid for by future interest from

Seven ways to reboot G7 sanctions on Russia

At the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum on June 7, Russian President Vladimir Putin was defiant about the Russian economy. “Despite all the obstacles we are facing and the illegitimate sanctions imposed against us,” he declared, “Russia remains one of the key participants in global trade and is rapidly expanding the new logistics and geography

US takes big step toward making Russia pay for Ukraine invasion

The landmark US aid bill signed by President Biden on April 24 has visibly boosted morale in Ukraine. Many analysts believe the $61 billion package will significantly improve Ukraine’s military outlook, easing months of critical supply shortfalls and creating new opportunities to strike back at the invading Russian army. While most attention has so far