First change:
With the latest sanctions on Friday, February 23, the US has targeted more than 4,000 officials, oligarchs, companies, banks and others, including President Vladimir Putin and his allies.
Washington says the sanctions, launched by US President Joe Biden over the past two years, are designed to make his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, “even more expensive for his aggression abroad and repression at home”.
In its most recent round, it focused on individuals and companies related to the arms production, finance and import sectors. It also targets three officials who Western leaders say were involved in the death of opposition figure Alexei Navalny.
However, the sanctions were not the final blow to Putin's ambitions. The International Monetary Fund promises that Russia's economy will continue to grow, and GDP is projected to increase by 2.6 percent in 2024.
Two years ago tomorrow, Vladimir Putin's brutal offensive against Ukraine began.
We remain committed to providing critical assistance to Ukraine and holding Russia accountable for its aggression.
President Biden's full statement: pic.twitter.com/f3tsIm5LM0
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) February 23, 2024
But what do the White House sanctions entail and, in general, how effective are these measures?
Sanctions imposed on individuals restrict their access to assets in the United States and other Western countries and restrict their ability to travel and do business. They also punish those who do business with authorized persons or institutions.
Companies, for their part, are denied access to the US market, as well as having accounts in the country.
The Biden administration recognizes that sanctions alone are not enough to deter Russian aggression, and many experts say that sanctions are not enough, as evidenced by the growth of the Russian economy.
The worst affected is the common man
The Russian invasion of Ukraine was initially greeted with panic by some Russians, with Western countries grounding flights and devaluing the ruble, leading some to queue at ATMs to withdraw their currency.
That prompted Russia's central bank to raise interest rates to stabilize the ruble, raising borrowing costs. Two years later, interest is still 16%, and some have had to put their purchase plans on hold because they could not afford the cost of the loan.
Western brands like McDonald's disappeared from Russia and were replaced by the Russian version. It is still possible to get western products like iPhones, but they are now more expensive. Now it is almost impossible to get foreign flights as there are no direct flights. The ruble is still weak, which means it's now more expensive for Russians to spend their money abroad.
With Reuters and AP
