Tag: Sanctions

The End Of Sanctions On Syria

On his very lucrative (for Donny mostly) trip through the hell hole many call the Middle East our boy Donny has decided to be magnanimous and lift the sanctions that have been place for many decades basically because Syria was labeled as a ‘terrorist state’…..why is he being so generous?

But now they can return to the fold of the ‘good guys’….I mean what could go wrong after all the new president of Syria was a commander in al-Qaeda. (Remember them?)

But that aside what does this turn of events mean?

President Trump’s Tuesday announcement that he would lift US sanctions on Syria was greeted with jubilation in the streets of Damascus, with the AP reporting people “whistled and cheered the news as fireworks lit the night sky.” Here’s what you need to know about what the move could mean for the country:

  • History: Syria was designated a state sponsor of terrorism in December 1979, which Middle East Eye reports put it in the same bucket as Iran and Cuba and put financial restrictions on things like US foreign aid; defense sales were banned. More sanctions came in the early 2000s. They reached their extreme in 2011 as the US responded to Bashar al-Assad’s crackdown on protesters.
  • Historic numbers: Middle East Eye reports “bilateral US-Syria trade, which still stood at roughly $900m in 2010, dropped below $60m in 2012.”
  • A decimated economy: The New York Times reports the sanctions “effectively cut Syria out of the international banking system and isolated it from the global economy, blocking money transfers, restricting imports, and barring activity by most international companies.”
  • A February report: The UN found that 25% of Syrians were unemployed and 90% lived in poverty. The report held a “stark warning,” it noted: “At current growth rates, Syria’s economy will not regain its pre-conflict GDP level before 2080. Annual economic growth must rise six-fold to shorten recovery to ten years, and an ambitious ten-fold rise would be needed over 15 years to bring the economy to where it would have been without conflict.”
  • ‘Game changer’: Those are the words the Times uses for what Trump’s move could mean for Syria. It reports that countries that back Syria’s new government, like Qatar and Saudi Arabia, would be able to send financial aid without fear of negative consequences; Syrians abroad could more easily send funds home; and “private companies from Turkey and elsewhere could seek contracts in construction and other sectors.” Al Jazeera echoes that, noting, “Whether the US itself invests in Syria remains to be seen, but increased Arab and Turkish investment is likely.”
  • Mechanics: The Times notes that Trump has the power to lift some of the sanctions, but Congress will need to have a hand in removing others.

All that is well and good but I want to know how Israel is going to react since they have occupied part of Syria for 50 years and they are still bombing Damascus.

Will Israel play nice or will it just be the same as usual with the US covering their asses for them?

Or for that matter…..how will Iran react?

Any thoughts?

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

More Sanctions & Stuff

Donald the Orange has been busy with his smoking quill signing EO after EO (when will the Congress get involved?) this time it is not some nation but the International Criminal Court in The Hague.

Day after his majesty Israel’s BiBi came to DC the Lord High Destroyer issued yet another EO against an international organization….

Days after his meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House, President Trump plans to place sanctions on the International Criminal Court. Officials say the court, which issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu in November, will be sanctioned for “improperly” targeting the US and its allies, reports Reuters. According to a fact sheet seen by NBC News, the order will include financial sanctions and visa restrictions against ICC officials who take part in investigations of US citizens or US allies. Their family members will also be sanctioned.

“The ICC was designed to be a court of last resort,” the fact sheet states. “Both the United States and Israel maintain robust judiciaries.” The 125-member court, based in The Hague, Netherlands, prosecutes international crimes including war crimes and genocide. Others on its wanted list include Vladimir Putin and Hamas leaders. The US, Israel, Russia, and China are not members. Sources tell Reuters that the court has been braced for possible sanctions for months and has paid salaries three months in advance.

Trump also targeted the ICC during his first term, the BBC reports. In 2020, he sanctioned officials of what then-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called a “kangaroo court” over its plans to investigate alleged war crimes in Afghanistan. The Biden administration lifted the sanctions in 2021.

This means nothing to some because they have no idea what this organization is about…..they listen to Billy Buzzbrain for their definition….

The International Criminal Court (ICC) investigates and, where warranted, tries individuals charged with the gravest crimes of concern to the international community: genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity and the crime of aggression. As a court of last resort, it seeks to complement, not replace, national Courts. Governed by an international treaty called the Rome Statute.

The Court was first brought about in 1919 it was never ratified after WW1 and again in 1948….

The US is not a member nor does it contribute to the budget….do I need to repeat that to get it through some thick skulls?

Why sanctions?  It is to protect Israel no other reason no matter if they committed a crime or not.

Since the US is not a member what good does this sanction EO have?

As our lives get better with Donald….

En route to the Super Bowl Sunday, President Trump previewed an announcement he says is coming Monday. “Any steel coming into the United States is going to have a 25% tariff,” he told reporters aboard Air Force One. “Aluminum, too.” He also promised “reciprocal tariffs” coming later in the week, “probably Tuesday or Wednesday,” which the AP takes to mean that the US will impose import duties in response to other countries that have imposed such duties on the US. “If they are charging us 130% and we’re charging them nothing, it’s not going to stay that way,” he said. But some trading partners might not be affected, NBC News reports.

“It won’t affect everybody, because there are some where we have similar tariffs, but the ones that are taking advantage of the United States, we’re going to have a reciprocity,” Trump continued. “Very simply it’s if they charge us, we charge them.” A survey last week found that Americans are expecting Trump’s tariffs to bump up inflation, and after Trump first promised reciprocal tariffs on Friday, financial markets dropped. While Trump has sometimes painted tariffs as fees that other countries pay, it’s actually importers who pay the duties, and those US companies often pass along the higher prices to consumers.

Then there is his desire for a 51st state….

A prerecorded interview between President Trump and Bret Baier of Fox News aired during the network’s Super Bowl pregame show Sunday, and during it, the president said he’s not joking when he makes remarks about Canada becoming the “51st state.” Asked by Baier if it was “a real thing,” as outgoing Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau reportedly warned business and labor leaders Friday, Trump responded, “Yeah it is.” He continued, “I think Canada would be much better off being the 51st state because we lose $200 billion a year with Canada. And I’m not going to let that happen. Why are we paying $200 billion a year, essentially a subsidy to Canada?”

As the AP puts it, “the US is not subsidizing Canada.” Rather, it purchases things from Canada, including commodities; the $72 billion trade gap seen in 2023 is largely due to how much energy, including oil, the US imports from Canada. As for the pregame interview, it’s a longstanding presidential tradition, though former President Biden declined to participate for the past two years and Trump only participated three of the four years of his first presidential term. The rest of the interview will air Monday on Special Report With Bret Baier, USA Today reports.

Finally that damn pesky penny….

President Trump says he has directed the Treasury Department to stop minting new pennies, citing the rising cost of producing the one-cent coin, the AP reports. “For far too long the United States has minted pennies which literally cost us more than 2 cents. This is so wasteful!” Trump wrote in a post Sunday night on his Truth Social site. “I have instructed my Secretary of the US Treasury to stop producing new pennies.” He added, “Let’s rip the waste out of our great nations budget, even if it’s a penny at a time.”

Trump had not discussed his desire to eliminate the penny during his campaign. But Elon Musk’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency raised the prospect in a post on X last month highlighting the penny’s cost. The US Mint reported losing $85.3 million in the 2024 fiscal year that ended in September on the nearly 3.2 billion pennies it produced. Every penny cost nearly $0.037—up from $0.031 the year before. The mint also loses money on the nickel, with each of the $0.05 coins costing nearly $0.14 to make. It is unclear whether Trump has the power to unilaterally eliminate the lowly one-cent coin. Currency specifications—including the size and metal content of coins—are dictated by Congress.

That should pay off the national debt in record time.

Can you just feel your lives getting better everyday?

This whole clown show called the Trump administration is wasting time and money doing shit that has nothing to do with their infamous claim of “Make America Great Again”…..what a fucking joke…..but it works well with the ignorant slugs that support his brand of hatred.

Enough Said!

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Let’s Try Even More Sanctions

The US is imposing new sanctions on Russia….

Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced the US has put 250 individuals and entities on blacklists for supporting the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Washington has waged an economic war aimed at destroying the Russian economy for the past 20 months. However, Moscow has largely successfully circumvented the Western financial penalties. 

Blinken said in a statement, “The US is imposing sanctions today on over 250 individuals and entities in connection with Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.” The statement continued, “The Department of State is imposing sanctions on over 100 entities and individuals, including those engaged in sanctions evasion, furthering Russia’s ability to wage its war against Ukraine, and bolstering Russia’s future energy production and export capacity.”  

The statement added, “Concurrently, the Department of the Treasury is imposing sanctions on over 150 individuals and entities, including multiple networks used by Russia to circumvent sanctions, numerous third-country suppliers to Russia’s military-industrial base, and additional Russian financial institutions.”

https://libertarianinstitute.org/news/us-issues-hundreds-of-new-sanctions-against-russia/

I have written many times about how sanctions do very little to change things…..in fact there are times when they just help business to boom.

And oil business for Russia is booming after the massive sanctions imposed by the US and its NATO allies….

A Bloomberg analysis of Russian energy exports found Moscow has largely successfully circumvented the Group of 7’s (G7) price cap on Russian oil exports. The Kremlin has found buyers in India and China to replace exports to Europe. Additionally, Moscow has contracted with a group of tankers willing to transport Russian oil despite potential economic penalties.

Bloomberg reports, “Russia’s net oil revenues of $11.3 billion in October accounted for 31% of the nation’s overall net budget revenue for the month, according to Bloomberg calculations that are built around Russian finance ministry data, but smooth out profit-based tax revenue.” The article continues, “That was the highest since May 2022 and exceeded any single month in the year before the invasion of Ukraine, which initially caused huge volatility to the nation’s exports.”

After Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, President Joe Biden announced the US and its allies would use sanctions to cripple the Russian economy and disable Moscow’s war machine. The Kremlin was able to find trading partners willing to ignore the Western sanctions, such as China, India, and Turkey. 

As the economic war failed to deliver a blow to the Russian economy during the first year of the war, in December 2022, Washington and its allies in the G7 imposed a $60 per barrel price cap on Russian oil exports. However, Moscow has effectively evaded the economic penalties by shipping its oil via a fleet of tankers that operate outside of Western enforcement mechanisms. 

https://libertarianinstitute.org/news/russian-oil-revenue-higher-in-october-than-any-month-in-2021/

Sanctions are nothing more than a feel good solution that accomplishes very little to nothing.

But that is okay as long as the ‘leaders’ can go before a camera and convince the weak mind that they are doing damage to the opposition….

Like I said feel good at best and makes for great news fodder for the evening news.

Maybe we should impose more sanctions.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

 

Sanctions–A Horrible Idea

I have made my thoughts on sanctions abundantly clear….in case you missed it….as a penalty for bad behavior hey do not work!

If you need more information (most will not for that would mean reading something before commenting)…..

Sanctions And Tariffs

Is Sanctions The Answer?

I told you I had strong opinions on sanctions.

They have not worked on Cuba….or Venezuela….or any other nation we deem as a bad player….and that goes for Russia.

The West has put into place massive sanctions against Russia since they invaded Ukraine….and we continue to find new ways to sanction the nation.

Let’s look just how effective these measures have been to Russia.

The International Monetary Fund has said it expects the Russian economy to grow by 1.5% this year despite the US-led Western sanctions campaign against the country, which President Biden once vowed would “turn the ruble into rubble.”

The Russian economy shrank by 2.1% last year, but it has bounced back as Russia is adjusting to the sanctions. The Wall Street Journal on Wednesday called the economic war a “stalemate,” comparing it to the situation on the battlefield in Ukraine.

The report said the sanctions initially made it harder for Russia to acquire microchips and other technical components, but Moscow then found sanctions loopholes through neighboring countries. Russia has also had no problems selling its oil as its found new markets in India and elsewhere in Asia.

The Journal cited analysts who said the sanctions will hurt Russia in the long term, but Moscow continues to forge stronger ties and significantly increase trade with China. An alternative to the US-dominated global financial system is slowly being formed by Russia, China, and other countries targeted with US sanctions.

The US has successfully crushed the economies of smaller countries with sanctions, but the sanctions on Russia were the harshest imposed on such a large economy. US sanctions on smaller nations are losing some of their power as China and Russia offer alternative markets.

For example, Iranian oil sales in 2022 exceeded those in 2016 before the US withdrew from the nuclear deal in 2018 and reimposed sanctions on the country. Most of the new Iranian oil sales have been to China.

(antiwar.com)

So the economic attack is not hurting Russian economy….why keep looking for more ways to fail in this corner?

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Sanctions–Ineffective At Best

I have made my opinions on sanctions to my readers….these do little to turn the course of international relations….take Cuba, Iran, China, etc etc….of all our sanctions have we changed anything?

Now with Ukraine and Russia going at it like oversexed hogs….sanctions are once again in the news….and in the news….

But is the world behind our efforts to make change?

Not really.

Looks like the US will have to threaten the world to get them to play along…..

The White House plans to send a clear message to its European partners in the economic war against Russia, “you are either with us or against us.” Two US Treasury officials will visit European and Central Asian partners next month to demand all sanctions on Russia be implemented.

Treasury officials Liz Rosenberg and Brian Nelson will meet with leaders of financial institutions in Switzerland, Italy and Germany. The AP reports the officials will have a simple message, “1. Continue to provide Moscow with material support or 2. Keep doing business with countries that represent 50 percent of the global economy.”

Rosenberg and Nelson will provide their European counterparts with intelligence on alleged sanctions evaders. If those countries fail to crack down on those still doing business with Russia, then Washington is threatening to issue “penalties.” It is unclear how far the Joe Biden administration is willing to punish NATO allies for violating sanctions.

The policy echoes President George W. Bush’s doctrine that countries must either actively align with Washington in its Middle East wars, or else be judged as working “with the terrorists.” 

(antiwar.com)

Is sanctions a type of siege warfare?

In the distant past, the one place that people could escape a marauding army was behind the walls of a castle. Though this usually protected them from any immediate danger, it created problems of its own. While under siege and waiting for outside help or for the attackers to leave in frustration, those behind the walls could ultimately run out of food and even potable water, which would lead either to surrender or a slow, terrible death.

Although they’re never portrayed as such, in our own time, a form of siege warfare is applied to whole countries, usually poorer ones, through the misuse of sanctions.

There are innumerable forms of sanctions: opprobrium, boycotts, embargoes, denial of service, travel bans, export bans, divestment, asset seizures, blockades, censure, and much more.

…

We have often been told that sanctions like those used against Iraq will eventually lead to the overthrow of governments Western powers don’t like. History doesn’t bear this out. If anything, in countries as diverse as North Korea, Iran and Cuba, sanctions appear to have had the opposite effect, becoming a useful tool for rallying these populations behind their leaders. Just as Russian war crimes are making it more likely to increase Ukrainian resolute resistance, sanctions that hurt average Russians will tend to make them more loyal to Putin and less likely to resist him.

Sanctions as Siege Warfare

Let’s be honest….sanctions are at best…. ineffective.

Now we have the war in Ukraine and as predictable sanctions are our most publicized tactic….(besides the massive amount of monetary support that no one wants to talk about)

Joe Biden’s administration keeps boasting about how successful international sanctions have been in punishing Russia for invading Ukraine. But that boast is increasingly hollow, both with respect to the extent of international unity and the success of the sanctions. Instead of being a success story, the U.S.-led sanctions campaign against Russia is fast becoming another example of a chronically failed tactic.

The administration’s propaganda about widespread global support relies primarily on 2 resolutions condemning the invasion that the UN General Assembly approved, one in March 2022 and the other in February 2023. However, both resolutions were purely symbolic, toothless measures. They did not commit member states to take any action. Nevertheless, more than one-fifth of the UN members, including such key players as China, South Africa, and India, defied Washington’s pressure and cast negative votes or abstentions.

A more graphic and substantive indication of the unwillingness of countries not already in Washington’s geopolitical orbit to join the crusade against Moscow is their refusal to impose economic sanctions. Except for the NATO bloc and long-standing U.S. security dependents in East Asia, the global map is nearly devoid of countries that have adopted punitive measures. Such absence of support throughout the Middle East, Africa, and Latin America is especially striking.

Economic Sanctions Are Simultaneously Ineffective and Cruel

There is nothing now or in the past that illustrates just how effective sanctions are to try and control the situation…..

Hint:  They are far from effective.

And yet they will most likely be more sanctions in the news as the conflict drags on.

Typical War Department waste of time.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Those Russian Sanctions

The big push these days is for a cleaner energy and the dash toward nuclear power is growing in anticipation.

For this renewed interest will take uranium and this is where this post picks up….

Remember when the Ukraine invasion started and the US and its allies first attack was to put massive sanctions in place to punish the invader.

What about all the uranium that the west gets from Russia for its nuclear programs?

Many world powers have sped-up plans to introduce new nuclear power plants in a bid to reduce reliance on fossil fuels and decarbonise. Due to the high energy demand, many countries around the globe view renewable energy as insufficient in the mid-term to provide enough energy to meet the needs of the growing world population. However, nuclear power could provide a low-carbon alternative, offering abundant energy and low emissions. However, experts now worry that the global reliance on Russian uranium to power many of these projects could put many world leaders in a quandary, having already introduced sanctions on Russian energy and attempted to reduce their reliance on Russia.  Earlier this year, the U.S. announced a $6 billion bailout for its existing nuclear plants. The government and the Department of Energy (DoE) partnered on a scheme to help nuclear plants across the country facing severe economic challenges to support the longevity of U.S. nuclear power, as part of the country’s green transition. Despite being controversial, nuclear power is considered carbon neutral, and therefore key to transitioning away from fossil fuels. Since then, the launch of Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) has encouraged greater investment in the nuclear energy sector. It offers a variety of subsidies, including a production tax credit to help preserve the existing fleet of nuclear plants and tax incentives for the development of new nuclear reactors.  

While developing its nuclear assets demonstrates a step forward in the movement to carbon neutrality, the U.S. has one very big challenge to overcome for its nuclear power plants to be a success – its reliance on Russian uranium. The type of uranium that U.S. nuclear reactors require to run is only sold commercially by one company in the world, a subsidiary of the Russian State Atomic Energy Corporation (ROSATOM). At present, U.S. nuclear firms buy around half of the uranium they use from state-owned companies in Russia, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan. Scott Melbye, Executive Vice President at Uranium Energy Corp., stated “We estimate that there is more than $1 billion in annual U.S. dollar purchases of nuclear fuel flowing to ROSATOM.” 

(oilprice.com)

As usual these sanctions are not as sweeping and all inclusive as they would have you believe.

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“lego ergo scribo”

All Those Amazing Sanctions

The US is the master of issuing sanctions against our ‘enemies’…..we have them in place on Russia, North Korea, Iran, Cuba and god knows how many others.

Sanctions are nothing more than a feel good measure to make it appears that we are doing something when in reality it is mostly a waste of time and energy.

I have written many times about the uselessness of sanctions and all that goes with them.

Is Sanctions The Answer?

And now some others have seen just how flipping useless these actions are…..

The definition of insanity, it is often said, is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. Yet that is exactly what U.S. and other Western policymakers have done in imposing broad economic sanctions against adversarial and otherwise problematic regimes.

The results have generally not been positive. Instead of persuading authoritarian and aggressive leaders to change their ways, broad sanctions have reinforced anti-democratic tendencies and incentivized nuclear and other proliferation. Meanwhile, ordinary citizens of these countries suffer in terms of declining standards of living and increased government repression, while a shrinking elite prospers from control over limited resources.

We have seen this movie over and over in places as distant and distinct as Venezuela and Iran, Cuba, Syria, and North Korea.

The latter country is a particularly depressing poster child for sanctions. Since it began developing and testing nuclear weapons — after the George W. Bush administration withdrew from a non-proliferation deal known as the Agreed Framework in 2002 — North Korea has been hit with wave after wave of sanctions and has become increasingly isolated. While there is no mass starvation of the sort that killed as many as two million people in the 1990s, there is serious food insecurity with many North Koreans eating only one meal a day, according to well-informed sources.

Using COVID-19 as an excuse, the government of Kim Jong-un has refused access to international aid agencies such as the World Food Program and made it more difficult for North Koreans to learn about the outside world or to escape as refugees. The China-North Korea border, which was once relatively porous, is now hermetically sealed, with, informed sources say, 169 watchtowers and two barbed-wire perimeters preventing North Koreans from reaching and crossing the Yalu River and eventually making their way to South Korea via third countries.

When will the US learn that sanctions don’t solve its problems?

Be Smart!

Learn Stuff!

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Those Russian Sanctions

At the start of the Ukraine/Russia mash-up the US did what we always do….imposed sanctions.

I have not been a fan of sanctions because I do not believe they are all that effect…… as I wrote in the past…..

Sanctions, What Are They Good For?

I post this because of the news from this weekend….

Russia’s gas giant Gazprom is set to rake in 85% higher revenues this year, to around $100 billion, as natural gas prices surged following the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the significant cut to Russian pipeline gas exports to Europe, an analyst told the Financial Times on Friday.

By choking supply to Europe, Gazprom has driven natural gas prices three times higher than last year’s price, which more than offsets the lower volumes Russia is sending to Europe, Ron Smith, an oil and gas analyst at BCS Global Markets, told FT.

“You can make a solid case that Gazprom will earn more from supplying less gas,” according to the analyst.

…

The EU is looking to limit Putin’s revenues from gas, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Wednesday the Commission would propose a price cap on Russian gas as “We must cut Russia’s revenues which Putin uses to finance this atrocious war against Ukraine.”

Also on Wednesday, Vladimir Putin threatened the West that Russia would stop supplying all energy products to Europe if the EU and its Western allies impose price caps on Russian oil and natural gas.

Several EU member states are opposed to the Commission’s plan on a price cap on Russian gas amid concerns that Putin would retaliate with a complete halt of all pipeline gas deliveries to Europe. 

(oilprice.com)

Sanctions do not always achieve the desired goal…..

If you are interested in more information then I suggest this post on IST…..

Sanctions And Tariffs

Now you know….

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Those Russian Sanctions

Part of the tale is that the US and NATO needs to punish Putin for his actions…..part of this punishment is arming Ukraine and heavy, massive sanctions on Russia.

Then I wonder are all these sanctions actually punishing Russia….

As usual since I am an opinionated SOB I have made my thoughts known on sanctions…..

Sanctions And Tariffs

And these thoughts….

Is Sanctions The Answer?

That out of the way for I like to let my reader see just what I am saying on these issues….let us return to the thought …..are sanctions hurting Russia?

Sanctions against Russia are a blessing in disguise, according toAlexey Butrimov, the general director of BJet, a Russian aviation company. Although he readily admits that the new restrictions have created significant complications for businessmen such as himself, he is confident that in the long-term, they will provide Russia with the much-needed stimulus to revive its long-dormant aviation industry. 

“On the one hand, we look at all the problems caused by sanctions with sadness, but we also understand deep down inside that we can finally resurrect our aviation,” he said. “When times are good, you don’t have much incentive to develop anything quickly. But now that we find ourselves in a situation where we don’t have anything, the only path forward is to build up our own aviation system.” 

Since Russian President Vladimir Putin’s decision in late February to send troops into Ukraine, Russia has quickly surpassed longtime pariahs such as Iran, North Korea, and Syria to become the most sanctioned country in the world. Almost overnight, the U.S. and its allies in Europe and Asia moved to freeze nearly half of Russia’s financial reserves, severely restrict Russia’s access to their financial and technological systems, and ban Russian planes and ships from entering their airspace and ports. Simultaneously, hundreds of multinational corporations have either suspended or downsized their operations in Russia since the start of the conflict.
The Biden White House has vowed that as a result of these new sanctions, “Russia will very likely lose its status as a major economy, and it will continue a long descent into economic, financial, and technological isolation.” Meanwhile, on the political front, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan told CBS News in April that sanctions were meant “to make it harder for [Russia] to fuel their war machine,” and thereby overtime help “improve Ukraine’s position at the bargaining table and make an outcome of this war that Ukraine wants to see more likely.” 

Are Sanctions Hurting Russia?

While the ‘news’ about sanctions would have us believe we are crippling Russia….I just do not see this as the solution to Ukraine…..why?

The US will keep shoving money up Ukraine’s butt even if the conflict ends today.

Someone is making out like a bandit without a gun…..and that is what all this lunacy is all about.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Is The World United Behind Sanctions?

Good question and the best answer is….NO they are not.

Biden has tried to whip up the world’s nations into action against Russia for its part in the invasion of Ukraine…..Europe appears to be on-board….but not the rest of the world.

Americans are fervently cheering for Ukraine in a war that many believe is a decisive struggle for human freedom. The intensity of our infatuation makes it easy to assume that everyone in the world shares it. They don’t. 

The impassioned American reaction is matched only in Europe, Canada, and the handful of U.S. allies in East Asia. For many people in the rest of the world, the Russia-Ukraine conflict is just another pointless Western war in which they have no stake.

The two biggest countries in Latin America, Mexico and Brazil, have refused to impose sanctions on Russia or to curtail trade. South Africa, the economic powerhouse of the African continent, has done the same. Asia, though, is where the resistance to joining the pro-Ukraine bloc appears most deliberate and widespread. This has alarmed Washington. To fight back, the United States is cracking its whip over several Asian nations.

China and India, where more than one-third of the world’s people live, are the most potent dissenters. Both abstained from the recent United Nations vote condemning Russia, and both reject U.S.-backed sanctions. There isn’t much more we can do to punish China, but India might seem more vulnerable. Soon after the UN vote, Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced that the United States had begun “monitoring some recent concerning developments in India, including a rise in human rights abuses.” Then President Biden’s chief economic advisor, Brian Deese, warned India that it would face “significant and long-term consequences” if it does not reconsider its “strategic alignment.”

Pakistan, a nuclear power with 200 million people, did more than simply abstain from the UN vote. When the United States asked Prime Minister Imran Khan to join the anti-Russia coalition, he scoffed, “Are we your slaves…that whatever you say, we will do?”  This came not long after he told the Pentagon: “Any bases, any sort of action from Pakistani territory into Afghanistan, absolutely not.”  On the day President Vladimir Putin launched the invasion of Ukraine, Khan was with him in the Kremlin.

These countries are willing to risk US ire over Russia-Ukraine

So to answer my question….NO the world is not united against Russia on the sanctions proposals.

Any thoughts?

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“lego ergo scribo”