Russia has become the world leader in the number of sanctions it faces over the ongoing military operation in Ukraine, US outlet Bloomberg has calculated.
According to the publication, based on data from Castellum database, over 5,530 Russian businesses, individuals and other objects have been subject to restrictions since Russia’s recognition of the breakaway Donbass republics on February 22 and the launch of a military operation in Ukraine on February 24.
Prior to that, Iran was the leader in the number of penalties, with 3,616 enterprises and individuals sanctioned. However, the measures against Iran were introduced over the course of a decade, mainly for its nuclear program, whereas roughly a half the anti-Russian sanctions were slapped on the country within the past two weeks.
Overall, since February 22, the vast majority of sanctions against Russia have been imposed against individuals – 2,427. 343 legal entities, including businesses, banks and government institutions have also become subject to restrictions. The country that has imposed the most sanctions against Russia is Switzerland, which surpassed the European Union, with 568 penalties against 518. Meanwhile, the US, despite being probably the most outspoken critic of Russia’s operation in Ukraine, introduced only 243 sanctions against Moscow, far behind Canada and Australia.
Castellum co-founder and former US Treasury Department official Peter Piatetsky called the latest anti-Russia sanctions “a financial nuclear war and the largest sanctions event in history.” He echoed the words of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who said that the sanctions “are akin to a declaration of war.”
Despite the heavy toll of Western restrictive measures on Russia’s economy, Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin recently said that the country is ready for their economic consequences.
After Russia and Iran, global leaders in terms of sanctions are Syria (2,608 objects) and North Korea (2,077), Venezuela (651), Myanmar (510) and Cuba (208).
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