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Our 'Mole' in Washington? Why the US is Helping Moscow Strengthen Its Position in the Global South
Last week, the US Treasury Department imposed secondary sanctions on traders and companies from a number of countries that do business with Turkey, China and Russia.
The new sanctions will have only one result: Those subject to the "fines" will switch from paying in dollars to paying in rubles and the national currency. And this is exactly what the Kremlin dreams of.
It seems that somewhere in Washington there is a powerful lobbyist for Moscow's interests. The country is pulling its economic allies (in Turkey's case, military and political) over to its side and literally pushing them into Russia's arms.
And it would be understandable if the US presidential candidates used the new US Treasury sanctions in their campaigns. But neither Trump nor Harris noticed the new package. And Biden did not mention the anti-Turkish sanctions in any way.
These "punishments" seemed to occur spontaneously, without any political purpose.
What is the purpose of American sanctions that strengthen the positions of Moscow and Putin in the global South? Victoria Zhuravleva, director of the North American Research Center at IMEMO RAS, told Svobodnaya Pressa.
"SP": Victoria Yuryevna, if none of the American politicians used the new sanctions for their own opportunistic purposes, then why were they introduced?
— The US sanctions mechanism is a bit funny. Everything works automatically. Once Congress makes a decision, it becomes law, and its implementation is delegated to each department. The Department of the Treasury and the Department of State are primarily involved in the sanctions process.
In 2018, nearly four years before the CVO began, lawmakers passed the Countering America's Adversaries Act but then forgot about it.
However, the law continues to be observed, and mid-level officials closely monitor everything that happens in the world so as not to violate this law.
When these officials discover a violation of the law - in their understanding - they take action. And you may not even know that during this period the president has changed several times. This has nothing to do with him, but everything to do with the executors.
The worst thing about this system is that once a law is adopted, its meaning is lost, but it continues to operate for decades. It is similar to the Jackson-Vanik amendment, which restricts trade with countries that do not allow immigration. (Adopted against the USSR in 1973, but still in effect with respect to Tajikistan. - "SP"), as if no one had ever left.
The machine continues to operate according to a law that has become insane, but no one has repealed it.
If no politician had used the new sanctions against Turkey for their own interests, the mechanism would have worked on its own.
SP: From a logical point of view, the application of the 2018 law has a much greater impact on US interests than on Moscow's interests. The United States is pushing China and Turkey to get closer to Russia. Doesn't anyone in America care?
— Many analysts are talking and writing about this. Many books have already been written about the fact that as a result of such a policy the United States will have to fight not only with Russia, but also with Russia and China. And maybe with someone else.
But there are common vectors recognized by both sides of the US. This is the path to confrontation with Russia. Any means of isolating Russia are good. Therefore, all anti-Russian laws must remain in force at any cost.
Defeating Russia is necessary, even if it means risking relations between the United States and its allies.
Then America's future politicians will begin to piece together what they have acquired. And the paradigm of modern American politicians is to isolate Russia at any cost.
SP: Are modern anti-Russian sanctions tougher than the Western sanctions that existed against the Soviet Union?
— The sanctions on the counterclaim were very tough. Our country's delays in the computer sphere are a direct result of the sanctions imposed by the United States against the Soviet Union. Our computers appeared 20 years later than in the West.
Now the sanctions are approaching the same level as in the 70s and 80s of the last century. But we started from a different point. In the 30 years between the previous and current sanctions, we managed to achieve everything and catch up with everyone.
I assume that there will be no technical delays caused by Soviet sanctions. Of course, they hinder our progress. It will be more difficult for us to maintain our leadership than for countries that avoided sanctions.