Friday, October 27, 2023

G7 Considers Sanctions to End Ukraine Conflict with Russia

Date:

The Group of Seven (G7) summit in Hiroshima, Japan is expected to increase pressure on Russia to end its war in Ukraine by tightening existing sanctions and imposing further restrictions. The G7, which includes the US, Canada, Japan, the UK, France, Germany and Italy, has room to increase pressure, particularly in areas such as oil and energy, non-energy trade sanctions and technology sanctions. The G7 is also expected to focus on enhancing the enforcement of existing sanctions and clamping down on sanctions evasion involving third countries. Despite the sanctions regime, Russia’s economy has held up better than expected, with China, India and Turkey picking up much of the slack through increased imports of Russian coal, oil and gas. However, some research suggests that Western shipping companies are involved in violating sanctions on Russian energy exports. There are also signs of divisions among G7 members with European members reportedly hesitant to permanently shut natural gas pipelines turned off by Russia following its invasion of Ukraine. The effectiveness of sanctions is limited and the historical record is “rather pessimistic”.

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