The US has sanctioned Putin, but what does that really mean?

However, those with an in-depth knowledge of the Russian economy think Putin’s net worth rivals that of the world’s richest. (Credit: Reproduction/Social Media)

The Biden administration has said it will impose sanctions on Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is following in the footsteps of the European Union and sending troops to Ukraine.

“Following President Biden’s phone conversation with European Commission President Ursula van der Leyen, the United States will join President Putin and Foreign Minister Foreign Minister Lavrov and members of the Russian National Security Council in endorsing the decision of our European allies,” White House press secretary Jen Sagi said. Friday said.

+ UN chief urges Russian soldiers to ‘return to barracks’

But the practical implications of such a move, which Britain is also considering, are unclear for several reasons.

EU foreign policy chief Joseph Borrell said Putin and his top diplomat, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, had been added to the list of sanctioned individuals in response to the Ukraine crisis.

“I would point out that the only leaders in the world recognized by the EU are Assad of Syria, Lukashenko of Belarus and now Putin of Russia,” Borrell told a news conference after a meeting of EU foreign ministers. of conflict. block constraints.

Borrell added, “I can assure you that if you get big assets and suddenly you can’t get them, it’s going to cost you.”

Applying sanctions to individuals means preventing them from traveling to specific jurisdictions. Institutions prohibit any kind of transactions with these persons, be it banks, private schools or other institutions. The US imposed sanctions on Russian banks, preventing them from accessing the US financial system.

Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, declared that any sanctions against his boss would be “politically devastating” to US-Russia relations, although Putin was not personally “distressed”. Because Putin’s assets, which are believed to be greater than those of any man in the world, are hidden from view.

Putin doesn’t need to keep his assets in traditional institutions like banks or brokerages because the entire Russian economy — with its significant oil and natural gas and its rich natural resources — is under his control.

The president’s inner circle is made up of multi-hundred-million-dollar oligarchs. The huge net worth of these friends hide their wealth in offshore tax havens, suggesting Putin is richer than he lets on.

Official Kremlin disclosures indicate that Putin earns $140,000 a year. According to the documents, he owns three cars, a trailer and a 243 square meter apartment.

However, those with an in-depth knowledge of the Russian economy think Putin’s net worth rivals that of the world’s richest.

Bill Browder, an American financier banned from Russia after a clash with the Kremlin, told the US Senate in 2017 that Putin was “one of the richest men in the world”. According to Browder, its net worth is $200 billion.

“Putin considers everything that belongs to the Russian Federation to be his,” exiled Russian billionaire Sergei Pugachev, a former member of Putin’s inner circle, told the Guardian in 2015. “Any attempt to calculate [seu patrimônio líquido] Won’t win.”