World leaders slap sanctions on the Kremlin over invasion

WORLD LEADERS on Thursday condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as“barbaric”and quickly slapped heavy sanctions on the Russian economy, President Vladimir Putin’s inner circle, and many of the country’s oligarchs.

“Putin chose this war, and now he and his country will bear the consequences,” US President Joe Biden declared.

In near-unison, the United States, the 27-nation European Union, and other Western allies announced a round of punitive measures against Russian banks and leading companies and imposed export controls aimed at starving the country’s industries and military of semiconductors and other high-tech products.

From the US to Western Europe and Japan, South Korea and Australia, nations lined up to denounce the Kremlin as the outbreak of fighting raised fears about the shape of Europe to come. The invasion initially sent stocks slumping and oil prices surging on fears of higher costs for food and fuel.

RISK A WIDER WAR

The West and its allies showed no inclination to send troops into Ukraine – a non-member of NATO – and risk a wider war on the continent. But NATO reinforced its member states in Eastern Europe as a precaution against an attack on them, too.

“Make no mistake: We will defend every ally against any attack on every inch of NATO territory,” said NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg.

In the meantime, countries began taking steps to isolate Moscow in hopes of forcing it to pay so high a price that it changes course.

Biden, for now, held off imposing some of the most severe sanctions, including cutting Russia out of the SWIFT payment system, which allows for the transfers of money from bank to bank around the globe. Ukraine’s president called for Russia to be cast out of SWIFT, but the US has expressed concern about the potential damage to European economies.