Sanctions against Russia pile up after Ukraine attack

Major economic powers have laid sanctions against
Russia for its recognition of ORDLO, the Luhansk and Donetsk areas outside of
the control of the Ukrainian government on Feb. 21. Here is a selected list of
sanctions to date:

U.S. – A first set of sanctions directly related to
those operating within LNR/DNR were announced on Feb. 21.
On Feb. 22, the Treasury Department imposed sanctions on Russian sovereign
debt, two small state owned banks, and “Kremlin-connected elite”, a statement
from the department reads. In a press conference with U.S. Secretary of State
Antony Blinken on Feb. 22, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba stated that
the rolling sanctions are welcome for as long as they maintain pressure on
Putin.

EU – A set of sanctions against Russian government figures,
including the 351 State Duma members who supported the Donbas vote, is expected
to be signed by EU foreign ministers on Feb. 23. Germany has already revoked
the energy security report necessary for Nord Stream II certification.

China – The Chinese government stated on Feb. 23 that
no sanctions against Russia would be forthcoming because, despite over 100
sanctions already set by the U.S. government, “Have U.S. sanctions really
solved the problem?”, nytimes.com reported.

Japan – No new Russian sovereign debt will be issued
or distributed, and those linked to the break-away regions will have assets
frozen, nytimes.com reported.

Australia – Prime Minister Scott Morrison stated that
financial and visa sanctions would be set against members of Russia’s national
security council, among others. Also, Ukrainian visa applications “would be
moved to the top of the pile”, the Australian Broadcasting Service reported.

Canada – Prime minister Justin Trudeau rolled out bans
on trading in Russian sovereign debt, and stated that sanctions against Russian
MPs and others would be introduced in the near future.

James Hydzik: The initial wave of sanctions is not very impressive given the focus
on some banks, sovereign debt and MPs. The sanctions have to leave room for
further escalation, unfortunately, but are they strong enough to make an
impression immediately? It is possible that for the short term, Russia has
moved beyond worrying about sanctions and is focused mostly on the military
consequences of recognizing the Donbas regimes. However, these sanctions will
not be easily brushed aside later.