Sanctions against Russia would be more effective if the U.S. and EU better coordinated their efforts, says a Harvard think tank.
The West hit back at Moscow with punitive sanctions after Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, in what it declares is a “special military operation”.
Many of those sanctions, however, are not as impactful on the Russian economy as some economists had expected. Or indeed, Russia had expected.
Now a team of Harvard economists are proposing ways to impose better sanctions – their conclusion being too many exports to Russia are restricted by either the European Union or the U.S., but seldom both.
Better coordination between the EU and U.S., with a focus on restricting the sale of basic components that go into many finished goods, would greatly improve their effectiveness, according to analysis by Ricardo Hausmann and two Harvard colleagues.
It is their belief that the cost of sanctions in terms of higher prices and lower output could be raised by 60% if their recommendations are followed.
