In the six months since the Russian war against Ukraine began, we have seen horrific images of bombings, atrocities and the displacement of an entire people. We also see the tremendous courage of the Ukrainian people and the unprecedented effort of the West in support of Ukrainian democracy. A key element in this effort is the sanctions and export controls on Putin’s war machine.
It will take time, but the facts show that sanctions and export controls are already having an effect. The Russian economy is expected to contract to 15 percent this year, while the EU economy grew by 4 percent in the second quarter. Russia has twice defaulted on its national debt and defaulted on its foreign currency debt. Sanctions have frozen more than half of the Central Bank of Russia’s foreign exchange reserves. Money that would otherwise have been used to fund Putin’s military offensive.
Putin never seriously negotiated
Export controls prevent Russia from importing the key technologies it needs to build and maintain its military equipment. We hoped that Putin would never use this device to destroy peace in Europe. Numerous diplomatic attempts were made to persuade Moscow to give in. The talks failed because Putin and his government never seriously negotiated. Now that he has brought the war back to Europe, we must ensure that our economies no longer support his military adventurism.
The US economy faces challenges from Putin’s unjust war, the Covid-19 pandemic and inflation due to supply chain disruptions. In fact, it affects the entire global economy in a similar way. We are working with Europe to diversify the natural gas supply in line with climate goals and to lower the price of Putin’s oil, causing him to lose his main source of income.
Together, the US and Europe are making huge efforts to prove to Putin that he cannot blackmail us into taking this war for granted. It is arguably the most sweeping undertaking of our time, and we cannot afford to fail. The people of Ukraine and future generations across Europe, the US and beyond are counting on us to succeed.
“Crown” comment by Victoria Kennedy, US Ambassador to Vienna
Source: Krone
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