Thread by @OlivierGuitta

#Russia's economic pic: 1- Amassed foreign reserves of 635B$, 5th largest in the world; 2- National debt of 18% of GDP, 6th lowest in the world; 3- Has a budget surplus; 4- It has slashed its dependency on oil state revenues with fiscal break-even cost of a barrel of oil at $52

#US #Biden declared that #Russia-n #Putin "will be a pariah on the international stage" for his unprovoked attack on #Ukraine, and announced severe new sanctions with the #G7 that include sweeping export controls and a freeze on billions of dollars worth of Russian assets.

Sberbank — which is #Russia's largest financial institution and holds nearly one-third of the overall Russian banking sector's assets — will be cut off from the #US financial system.

"Full-blocking" sanctions will be imposed on four additional Russian banks, freezing the #US-based assets of VTB, Bank Otkritie, Sovcombank OJSC, Novikombank and 34 subsidiaries.

The #US will impose sweeping export controls on technologies critical to the #Russia-n defense sector and broader economy, including semiconductors, telecommunication, encryption security, lasers, sensors, navigation, avionics and maritime technologies.

Seven Russian elites and their family members who hold "some of the highest position of powers in the country" will also be sanctioned.

The #Swift option that could be an efficient sanction against #Russia has not even been mentioned. These toothless sanctions are not going to stop a bully like #Russia #Putin. A disgrace that the West is not standing up forcefully with #Ukraine.

Finally a real meaningful sanction against #Russia after its invasion of #Ukraine: The #US & the #EU have banned Russian banks from the #Swift financial system that connects thousands of financial institutions around the world. #StandWithUkraine

The West still fuelling #Putin's war on #Ukraine: #US and #Europe are paying #Russia $1B a day for oil and gas, despite sanctions wrecking its economy. Interestingly these payments are not part of the #SWIFT ban on #Moscow. bit.ly/3410roK

Despite the headlines about #Russia being banned from #SWIFT, there are many exceptions including payments for energy purchases. Only 6 banks are banned: for example the third largest Russian bank GazpromBank is not. It's not a blanket ban as misleadingly presented by most media.