Four easy steps to tighten sanctions against Russia

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is now in its third year, and there is no end in sight to the war. Instead, Russia continues with a full-scale military invasion.Russian Federation destroyed Some cities and villages of Ukraine and their wars killed Thousands of Ukrainians. The Russians suffered hundreds of thousands of casualties as well, but these losses do not seem to have phased Kremlin policy. Instead, the Russians are fully committed to the war.

In light of this death and destruction, some members of the international community are calling for: peace negotiations between Ukraine and Russia.Some argue that a ceasefire would do that. save a life.Others believe that can’t win the war.

But these views are misplaced. Recent statements from senior Russian officials indicate that Russia has no intention of stopping its aggression. For example, Dmitry Medvedev, former Russian president and current deputy chairman of the Russian Security Council, said: Said Peace negotiations will not take place until Ukraine fully cedes to Russia.Likewise, Russian President Vladimir Putin declared His country will “do everything to end” the war.

These statements do not give the impression that Russia wants peace negotiations. Rather, they suggest that the Russian Federation is dedicated to completely destroying Ukraine.

The international community has pursued two main areas to counter Russia’s actions. One of the means of supplying Ukraine is necessary weapons To win the war. Western technology and equipment helped Ukraine drive Russians out of north-central Ukraine in 2022. These contributed to the destruction of Ukraine in the Black Sea in 2023 and the disruption of Russian naval capabilities. This equipment allowed Ukraine to liberate territory occupied by Russia. east and south. This significantly reduced Russa’s military capabilities.

Another way is sanctions. When the Russian invasion began in February 2022, dozens of countries rallied. impose severe penalties This is to punish Russia for its actions. The United States, United Kingdom, European Union, Canada, Japan, Australia and several other countries have imposed sanctions targeting Russian government officials, oligarchies, business leaders and companies. Russia has been suspended by various international organizations. Several countries suspended flights to and from Russia, blocked Russian ships from entering ports, and suspended visas for celebrities. They also froze and seized Russian assets. As a result, Russia lost billions of dollars Because of these sanctions.

but loophole These sanctions still exist, allowing the Russian Federation to continue to benefit during an unnecessary and unjust war. These loopholes have helped stimulate the Russian economy and finance Russian aggression.

For example, the energy sector remains very profitable. Although some Western countries have stopped purchasing gas directly from Russia, Russia is still profiting from this market.According to recent report, the United States, the United Kingdom, and the European Union continue to purchase oil, including Russian crude, from third parties. Various refineries in countries such as India combine oil with crude oil purchased from Russia. The product is blended and refined into gasoline, which is then sold overseas. The gas is then transported by ship and delivered to Western countries where it is used by consumers.

Russians are earned Through such a process, also liquid natural gas.

Russia has also benefited in other ways.Various parts of Russian military equipment depend on American advanced electronic components. Thousands of companies have ceased operations and exited Russia, while others have done little to prevent the resale of their products to Russia. third party. These intermediaries buy parts and materials from Western countries and re-export them to Russia. This allows the Russians to continue using various military equipment in Ukraine, including advanced electronics and technology.

Finally, the Russian Federation continues to participate in international markets. Some major banks did this, but It was deleted Hundreds of other banks continue to conduct international transactions using the SWIFT international financial messaging system. Daily. This will enable Russia to “carry out cross-border payments and transactions for imports and exports,” further contributing to the revitalization of the Russian economy.

So how can sanctions be tightened to ensure that Russia receives maximum punishment? First, the international community should consider further restrictions on energy markets. Western countries should ask third-party gas distributors how their products are refined and stop doing business with distributors that trace even a portion of their product back to Russia.prohibit these Imported goods That would reduce Russia’s profits and mean that Russia would have less income to buy weapons for the war.

Second, the international community should: promote transparency when conducting trade. This will reveal how Western advances and technology are infiltrating Russian military equipment. Once these companies are identified, they must be held accountable for their actions.western countries can also be punished These companies are allowed to continue operating in Russia.

Third, the international community should expand sanctions to include several other measures. russian banks. Punishing these financial institutions would limit Russia’s ability to participate in international markets. This would make international trade even more difficult for Russia and further impact the Russian economy.

Finally, the international community needs to work together to standardize and maximize punishments against Russia.In some cases, sanctions may apply inconsistent.For example, Gazprombank authorized It is approved by the US, UK, Canada, Switzerland, and Australia, but not by the EU. Similarly, senior leader Wagner Group companies were sanctioned by the UK and EU, but not by the US or Canada. To ensure that Russia faces the harshest penalties for war, the international community needs to work together on a sanctions list to resolve such contradictions.

In the past two years, the Russian economy has lost hundreds of billions of dollars in business.russian economy Made a contract However, this forced Russia to end its war of aggression. As a result, the international community needs to step up its efforts to punish Russia.

To maximize the effectiveness of these penalties, Western countries need to close loopholes in their current policies and adjust their sanctions lists. This would further shrink the Russian economy, weaken Russia’s financial institutions, and make it difficult for Russia to finance its ongoing invasion.

Although the overall effect of Russian sanctions remains to be seen, the international community should still continue to apply pressure on Russia. Modifying Russia’s sanctions policy could provide the additional pressure the world needs to force Russia to end the war.

mark temnicki is Certified freelance journalist Eurasian situation and non-resident At the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center.