Remind me again, just who were the sanctions supposed to hurt?
Today the ruble hit a high of 1.52 cents. Its highest value against the US Dollar since February 27th, 2020, the Euro since February 19th, 2020, and the British Pound since February 7th, 2020.
EU President Ursula von der Leyen wants a total embargo on Russian energy as part of a “sixth round of EU sanctions.”
The current proposal is to cut off Russian gas and oil from entering EU nations within six months. Companies based in EU countries would be banned from participating in the sale or transport of Russian energy outside of the EU as well. There is also an effort to force Serbia, a non-EU nation, into participating.
Several landlocked nations that rely heavily on Russian oil, such as Hungary, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia, would be economically devastated.
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has criticized the embargo, stating that it could spike oil prices so high that it will wreck the global economy. She also says it may not reduce Russian energy revenue because Russia will receive a higher price for the energy they still sell to the rest of the world. Even Ukrainian Finance Minister Sergii Marchenko has criticized the idea. He suggested the EU instead place a tariff on Russian energy and then give the money to Ukraine.
