Ukraine has Crushed Putin’s Imperial Fantasy
There is no escape hatch
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To counter Vladimir Putin, the west has taken two approaches after he invaded Ukraine last year. One is to provide monetary and lethal support for Ukraine. The other is to impose economic sanctions to deplete Putin’s ability to sustain the war. Neither one can be counted as a victory for the west. It was a mixed bag.
The incremental supply of weapons did not allow Ukraine the liberty it needed to crush the enemy. Nick of time deliveries forced Ukraine to yield crucial windows of opportunities. Because Ukraine lacked the offensive weapons needed to attack an enemy hiding behind defensive structures, they were unable to press forward following their victory in Kherson.
As a result of the west’s economic sanctions, Russia is already on a path to long term economic doom. Due to 47 small to mega-sized holes in the sanctions blanket, Russia did not experience the economic collapse many predicted.
It was last year’s UN vote calling for Russia’s unconditional withdrawal from Ukraine that first demonstrated the fragmented nature of global response. A total of 141 countries voted for the measure, four countries supported Russia, and 47 countries abstained.
You pick a side when you choose a neutral stance in the battle between the devil and human. The 47 countries that abstained from voting are what caused the sanctions regime to fail. There was little effort made by the west to break that alliance into multiple pieces and tighten financial sanctions on Putin’s regime.
Russian imports that fell immediately after the Ukraine invasion have slowly picked up speed and it is very close to pre-war levels. Among the entire list of countries that assisted Russia to escape the economic noose, China carved itself a special place — no one sells more goods to Russia and no one buys more goods from Russia.
The trade appears to be mutually beneficial at first glance, but it is more of a one-way street with all the benefits flowing to Beijing while a small amount goes to Moscow. Regardless of the outcome of the Ukrainian conflict, China has positioned itself to be a winner.
