A defiant Russia yesterday dismissed unprecedented Western sanctions over Ukraine after Brussels and Washington unveiled the toughest punitive measures against the Kremlin since the Cold War.
The third round of US and EU sanctions aims to force Russia to change tack and halt its support of separatists in Ukraine by targeting its vital financial, arms and energy sectors.
However, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov made light of the restrictions, also designed to hit the oligarchs in Russian President Vladimir Putin’s inner circle.
Photo: AFP
“And what about the sanctions? In for a penny, in for a pound,” he quipped to journalists.
Financial institutions put on a brave face, saying their operations would not be affected, while a top official unleashed a diatribe against the administration of US President Barack Obama.
“Obama will go down in history not as a peacemaker — everyone has already forgotten about his Nobel Peace Prize — but as a US president who started a new Cold War,” Alexei Pushkov, chairman of the foreign affairs committee at the Russian parliament’s lower house, said on Twitter.
There was no immediate official reaction from Putin’s office or the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but Moscow has long insisted sanctions would merely bring Russia’s society together and make its economy more self-reliant.
The stepped-up sanctions came as Moscow dismissed claims it was responsible for supplying the missile that downed Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17, and fighting in Ukraine showed little sign of abating.
They will notably make it tougher for Russian state-owned banks to access European financial markets, forcing their costs higher and hobbling an already struggling economy.
The Central Bank of Russia said that financial institutions were working normally and that if necessary, it would adopt measures to protect targeted lenders, which include the country’s second-largest bank, VTB.
Economists have warned that Europe’s own economy would also suffer from the so-called “sector sanctions” against its biggest source of energy and its major trading partner.
Despite the dismissive talk in Moscow, a number of economists acknowledged the new restrictions would be painful to absorb for Russia, and could stoke social tensions because its economy is sliding toward a recession.
“The current amount of corporate debt is US$700 billion; these debts should be refinanced,” FBK Strategic Analysis Institute Director Igor Nikolayev said, pointing to a lack of cheap loans in Russia.
Nikolai Petrov of the Moscow-based Higher School of Economics said that this time, the sanctions would be felt by everyday Russians — and predicted they would drive an even greater wedge between Putin and the West.
“The confrontation will increase abruptly. Putin has been practically driven into a corner and this man does not make concessions under pressure,” he said.
FREEDOM OF NAVIGATION: The UK would continue to reinforce ties with Taiwan ‘in a wide range of areas’ as a part of a ‘strong unofficial relationship,’ a paper said The UK plans to conduct more freedom of navigation operations in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea, British Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs David Lammy told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. British Member of Parliament Desmond Swayne said that the Royal Navy’s HMS Spey had passed through the Taiwan Strait “in pursuit of vital international freedom of navigation in the South China Sea.” Swayne asked Lammy whether he agreed that it was “proper and lawful” to do so, and if the UK would continue to carry out similar operations. Lammy replied “yes” to both questions. The
‘OF COURSE A COUNTRY’: The president outlined that Taiwan has all the necessary features of a nation, including citizens, land, government and sovereignty President William Lai (賴清德) discussed the meaning of “nation” during a speech in New Taipei City last night, emphasizing that Taiwan is a country as he condemned China’s misinterpretation of UN Resolution 2758. The speech was the first in a series of 10 that Lai is scheduled to give across Taiwan. It is the responsibility of Taiwanese citizens to stand united to defend their national sovereignty, democracy, liberty, way of life and the future of the next generation, Lai said. This is the most important legacy the people of this era could pass on to future generations, he said. Lai went on to discuss
AMENDMENT: Climate change is expected to increase the frequency of high-temperature days, affecting economic productivity and public health, experts said The Central Weather Administration (CWA) is considering amending the Meteorological Act (氣象法) to classify “high temperatures” as “hazardous weather,” providing a legal basis for work or school closures due to extreme heat. CWA Administrator Lu Kuo-chen (呂國臣) yesterday said the agency plans to submit the proposed amendments to the Executive Yuan for review in the fourth quarter this year. The CWA has been monitoring high-temperature trends for an extended period, and the agency contributes scientific data to the recently established High Temperature Response Alliance led by the Ministry of Environment, Lu said. The data include temperature, humidity, radiation intensity and ambient wind,
SECOND SPEECH: All political parties should work together to defend democracy, protect Taiwan and resist the CCP, despite their differences, the president said President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday discussed how pro-Taiwan and pro-Republic of China (ROC) groups can agree to maintain solidarity on the issue of protecting Taiwan and resisting the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The talk, delivered last night at Taoyuan’s Hakka Youth Association, was the second in a series of 10 that Lai is scheduled to give across Taiwan. Citing Taiwanese democracy pioneer Chiang Wei-shui’s (蔣渭水) slogan that solidarity brings strength, Lai said it was a call for political parties to find consensus amid disagreements on behalf of bettering the nation. All political parties should work together to defend democracy, protect Taiwan and resist