By ramping up sanctions on Moscow in response to its persistent destabilisation of Ukraine, the US and its European allies are closing a chapter in their relationship with post-communist Russia. They are recognising the breakdown of a 25-year effort to forge constructive ties with a state whose behaviour, it was once hoped, would depart from the suspicious self-isolation of the communist era.
For the foreseeable future, this hope is dead. Barring a wholly unlikely change in the strategic calculations of President Vladimir Putin, relations between the west and Russia will be difficult and even dangerous for years to come.
The latest sanctions go beyond earlier measures that targeted individuals and entities involved in Russia’s annexation of Crimea and subversion of eastern Ukraine. They will not bring the Russian economy to its knees and, in the short term, will not halt Russian military support for separatists in Ukraine. But they take aim at important sectors such as energy, defence and finance and, as such, will almost certainly spark Russian retaliation. There will be costs for western businesses that deal with Russia. European economies in particular may take a hit just when the worst of the eurozone crisis appeared to be over.