Virtually any additional sanctions against Russia would entail an economic cost for Europe, which is why the European Union is dithering. As the economic conflict with Russia enters a hazardous new phase, can Europe’s leaders hold their nerve?
PARIS – In 2003, the conservative US pundit Robert Kagan famously wrote that Europe “is turning away from power; it is moving beyond power in a self-contained world of laws and rules.” After Russia invaded Ukraine in late February, the European Union decided that it was time to prove Kagan wrong. The EU has mobilized economic power, at least, against Russia’s military aggression, and deployed an array of monetary, financial, trade, and investment sanctions.
PARIS – In 2003, the conservative US pundit Robert Kagan famously wrote that Europe “is turning away from power; it is moving beyond power in a self-contained world of laws and rules.” After Russia invaded Ukraine in late February, the European Union decided that it was time to prove Kagan wrong. The EU has mobilized economic power, at least, against Russia’s military aggression, and deployed an array of monetary, financial, trade, and investment sanctions.