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It’s Time To Impose 21st Century Sanctions On Russia
With the Russian invasion of Ukraine now a reality and operations under the leadership of a psychopath like Vladimir Putin, we need to consider a number of things. We are facing an unprecedented rupture of the international order, an ongoing war that could dictate the future of the world in many ways for many years.
As to be expected, technology is playing and will play a fundamental role as events unfold. Russia is a world leader in cyber-crime and is the source of most politically motivated cyberattacks and the vast majority of ransomware attacks, denial-of-service and other digital threats. Russia’s development of hybrid warfare is unmatched; the offensive against Ukraine began with massive cyberattacks on its government and banks.
The only response the West can make is to impose massive sanctions: Russia must be immediately expelled from the global interbank and financial communications system (SWIFT), Russian nationals’ visas must be suspended, all air traffic into and out of the country halted, along with online isolation, both at the level of technological components and connection infrastructures, as well as measures to exclude traffic from its domains and servers.
The isolation of Russia’s communication networks is essential, among other things, because the country has seen in the development of cryptocurrencies an opportunity to reduce the impact of economic sanctions. But also, because the huge system of cyberattacks it possesses will be used, without doubt, to try to destabilize the countries that participate in the sanctions. In the 21st century, economic sanctions can no longer be approached as they were in the 20th century: a much more comprehensive approach is needed, taking into account not only the usual ways of carrying out economic exchanges or attacks, but also non-traditional ones.
The invasion of Ukraine is also an opportunity to accelerate the energy transition of Europe, Russia’s main energy customer: we must minimize dependence on Russian gas and oil, and strengthen investment in clean energies that enable a higher level of independence. A recent study shows that a generation grid based solely on solar, wind and hydroelectric power (SWW), supplemented by a battery system, could power the entire United States, even in severe weather conditions, and also significantly reduce pollution levels. It is more important than ever for Europe to take the initiative in this regard, to do so in a coordinated manner and to prioritize it at all levels, at a time when the importance of interrupting all trade with Russia has already been demonstrated.
We can expect very difficult times in the months and years to come.
(En español, aquí)
