“Russian President Vladimir Putin has made it clear that Ukraine intends to subjugate Russia. This is the restoration of the Russian Empire and the pursuit of hegemony.”
On the 22nd (local time), US Secretary of State Tony Blincoln criticized Putin’s approval of sending Russian troops to Ukraine, saying it “exposed Russia’s hypocrisy.” Joe Biden’s administration has imposed sanctions on two Russian state-run banks and aides close to Putin, saying it is “the first piece of swift and harsh sanctions on Russia.” President Biden called it “first sanction.” “The sanctions are just the beginning,” a White House official said.
“Putin is trying to rewrite the history of the past 100 years by twisting and twisting it,” Biden said. A head-on clash between the US and Russia became inevitable as it revealed its will for an ‘economic war’ against Russia and at the same time was going to prevent attempts to change the world order that the US had led through World War II and the Cold War.
○ Beauty that stopped Putin’s ‘piggy bank’
The Biden administration made it clear today that the sanctions were aimed at President Putin. The plan is to block Russia from the international financial market and block the government’s money supply chain. Russia’s Foreign Economic Bank (VEB) and Promsvaj Bank (PSB), which have been placed on the sanctions list by the US Treasury, play a key role in energy exports and defense financing. A senior White House official said, “VEB is the Kremlin’s glorious piggy bank with assets worth $50 billion.” The White House also imposed sanctions on five people close to Putin, including PSB CEO Pyotr Pratkov and VK Group CEO Vladimir Kiriyenko, saying, “Those who share the profits of the Kremlin and corruption will also share the pain.” They are known to have a powerful influence on key policy decisions while helping Putin in office for a long time. The European Union (EU) will also impose sanctions on Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and the Internet Research Agency (IRA), which is leading the manipulation of Internet opinion, the British daily The Guardian reported. The Biden administration also banned trading of Russian government bonds in international financial markets.
○ “Ukraine is the new Berlin Wall”
The US response is a 180-degree change from the previous day’s attitude, which focused on diplomatic resolution while being cautious about direct sanctions on Russia. The White House said the change in Russia’s definition of ‘invasion’ was “for multiple reasons” and said it was “to protect American values.” The definition of the US-Russian conflict as a confrontation between democracy and authoritarianism. Following the US-China conflict, it is believed that if Russia challenges the US, a change in world order cannot be avoided. The New York Times evaluated that “Ukraine has become the new Berlin Wall (symbol of the East-West Cold War).”
○ Russia mocks “Europe will buy gas three times more expensive”
However, the evaluation of the effectiveness of the first sanctions was mixed. It is said that the effect is weak compared to the sanctions against President Putin, which have been warnings about, export control of high-tech industries such as semiconductors, and the complete withdrawal of major major banks from the international financial market.
The Kremlin took such a disrespectful attitude that it said that while Biden was delivering a sanctions speech, Putin was at another meeting and did not watch the broadcast of the speech. He also expressed confidence in shutting down the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline to provide natural gas to Germany. Dmitry Medvedev, deputy head of the Russian National Security Council, ridiculed “Europe will soon enter a ‘bright new world’ where you will have to buy 1,000 m³ of gas for 2,000 euros (about 2.7 million won).” This means that if Russia cuts off gas supply, European energy prices will triple. Russia has been adopting an ‘economic fortification’ strategy centered on domestic demand, such as increasing its foreign exchange reserves from $368.3 billion in 2015 to $635 billion recently in preparation for Western sanctions.
Washington = Byung-ki Moon, Correspondent [email protected]
Paris = Correspondent Yunjong Kim [email protected]
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