American officials admitted to CNN on Friday that US-led sanctions haven’t crashed Russia’s economy. Despite Russia’s record energy revenue and the strength of its currency, the officials insist that the effects of the sanctions are yet to be felt.
The US and its NATO and EU allies responded to Russia’s military operation in Ukraine by applying unprecedented economic sanctions to its economy. Russia became the world’s most sanctioned country within two weeks of the offensive, yet after successive rounds of penalties, energy embargos and excommunication from the SWIFT banking system, Moscow is reaping record profits from its fossil fuel exports, the ruble is as strong against the dollar as it was in 2019, and Russia’s inflation rate has fallen.
“We were expecting that things like SWIFT and all the blocking sanctions on Russia’s banks would totally crater the Russian economy,”CNN heard from an unnamed US official. One other said Washington “hoped to see the Russian economy suffering more by now, given the unprecedented severity”CNN paraphrased some of the sanctions.
Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed the same sentiment during an economic meeting earlier this week, declaring that the West’s “economic blitzkrieg”The attempt was unsuccessful.
Despite the apparent failure, the US officials told CNN that they expect to see Russia’s economy faltering by mid-2023. According to one official, Russia will soon experience shortages of components and raw materials from abroad. “has always seen this as a long term game.”
However, US President Joe Biden claimed that the sanctions were in place as far back March. “caused the Russian economy to crater,”The ruble’s value dropped by 1%, but it was temporary.
Russia’s sanctions have caused immense economic problems in Europe. Fuel prices have skyrocketed across the continent, inflation in the EU is at its highest level in history, and even Germany, the bloc’s foremost industrial power, risks “deindustrialization”As a result, the energy crisis has caused many to suffer.
European officials, just like American counterparts have maintained that Russia’s sanctions would be imposed on Russia if they were implemented over a sufficiently long period of time. Josep Borrell, the EU’s High Representative for External Affairs, stated that Russia will be affected by sanctions. “may not have an immediate impact,” adding: “It’s like going on a diet to lose weight and being upset that you haven’t lost kilos and kilos after just a couple of weeks.”
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