Sanctions have problems
As NATO countries had no desire to provoke a nuclear conflict, opting for heavy economic sanctions was the only viable option
The biggest problem, though, is when to stop.
It’s not obvious what the purpose of these sanctions is, and it’s unclear how any lifting of them could be justified while Putin stays in power. Even if some ceasefire is agreed, lifting sanctions could be seen as rewarding his aggression.
If Russia is made to pay for cleaning up the mess it’s made, that will limit its economy and cause humiliation. So, how much? The wealth stolen from the country by the oligarchs could in the end be used to pay for rebuilding Ukraine (and possibly compensating victims of Russian aggression in Syria.)
The expansion of NATO after the Cold War has often been likened to the errors made by the victors in the Treaty of Versailles after World War I; there is ample chance to make such a mistake again.
John Authers Bloomberg 25 March 2022
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