Polish newspaper reports: The West is ready for a new attack on Russia.
(Baonghean.vn) - Journalist Andrzej Szczesniak of Myśl Polska (Poland's oldest weekly newspaper) assesses that Russia has withstood strong sanctions pressure from the West. And soon, Russia will have to endure new attacks.
“The West’s blow to the Russian economy was very strong and could have brought down the biggest player. Russia survived. As the saying goes, the one who delivers the strongest blow is not the winner, but the one who can hold out the longest. The attempt to isolate Russia has failed,” – Ria Novosti quoted journalist Andrzej Szczesniak writing in Myśl Polska.
Journalist Andrzej Szczesniak argues that Russia has been severely affected; however, the Russian economy has not experienced a decline in output and the situation is under control. After all, oil accounts for more than 20% of the economy, and oil exports are Russia's largest source of income. More importantly, the powerful industry that provides jobs for millions of Russians has been maintained.
On December 22, 2023, President Biden signed an executive order activating secondary sanctions. According to the Polish journalist, it's a vague concept. But using them means that if Washington is unhappy about something, it can sanction any foreign bank that has dealings with Russia.
Jake Sullivan, the White House national security adviser, wants to "tighten the grip on Russia" and has threatened that they could "lose access to the American financial system." It's worth noting that the US dollar is the currency used to settle nearly half of world trade and accounts for 60% of global foreign exchange reserves.
According to journalist Andrzej Szczesniak, technically, this would block access to banks in the US. These are financial institutions, mostly based in New York, that serve as access points to the global financial system. Without them, transactions in US dollars would be impossible.
Journalist Andrzej Szczesniak argues that the West is truly preparing for a global economic war. That's why Brian Nelson, a financial intelligence and counterterrorism official at the U.S. Department of Commerce, used military language when he said, "The U.S. is focusing its efforts on this battlefield, hunting down those who allow President Putin to flaunt his power." These are terms used by military officials to refer to the ability to maintain influence abroad. And this is essentially isolating Russia, cutting it off from the rest of the world.
He added that the West is ready to continue waging a “global economic war” and launch the next attack.