, Columnist
Punishing Russians Won’t End the Ukraine War
Like strategic bombing in World War II, efforts to turn citizens against their leaders tend to backfire.
Not going anywhere yet.
Photographer: Valery Sharifulin/AFP/Getty Images
This article is for subscribers only.
So far, economic sanctions on Russia have done nothing to halt Vladimir Putin’s war on Ukraine. The ruble is still strong. Oil prices are high. Before Ukraine’s latest advances on the battlefield, polls showed that 75% of Russians still supported the war (in public at any rate).
So why continue with sanctions? Economic boycotts, of course, are one way for democratic governments to demonstrate their opposition to tyranny and military aggression without actually having to go to war.