Russian Sanctions. Weaponised Economics.
Episode 16, Mar 14, 2022, 11:52 PM
Steven Hamilton Assistant Professor of Economics at The George Washington University in Washington DC and a Visiting Fellow at the Australian National University discusses how the world is reeling from the the largest conventional military attack in Europe since World War 2. Russia has invaded the Ukraine.
Just about every country in the world is outraged about this invasion...with China sitting on the fence.
But unlike other wars, all the countries opposing the war have decided not to fight head to head with the Russian aggressor. Is this because they fear Vladimir Putin has forgotten the theory of Mutually Assured Destruction, meaning Putins threats of nuclear missiles against the West would start a nuclear war, where everyone ends up dead. Led by the United States and Europe, economic sanctions are now the weapons of choice against Russia rather than missiles, warships and fighter jets. The west believes it can economically sanction Russia into surrender. But just like bombs and missiles, sanctions too create collateral damage.
Steven Hamilton Assistant Professor of Economics at The George Washington University in Washington DC and a Visiting Fellow at the Australian National University. Steven has authored policy proposals for the Brookings Institution and provided economic commentary for the New York Times, the LA Times and Time Magazine.
Want To Dig Deeper?
Steven recommends reading,
Some pieces by economist Noah Smith:
Some pieces by economic historian Adam Tooze: