Khodorkovsky, once the richest man in Russia before he was prosecuted and jailed by the Kremlin, said Western governments bore “significant responsibility” for the conflict in Ukraine after failing to act against President Putin after he annexed Crimea in 2014. The former oil and gas tycoon, who at one point had a personal fortune estimated to be worth £12.38 billion, compared the West’s inaction to slapping a gangster and handing over money. “When you’ve got a gangster, not just a London hooligan, but a proper gangster, and he slaps you in the face, all you can do is give him your wallet and hope he’s not going to take your pants off. Mr Khodorkovsky told The Independent. “Of course, there is some significant responsibility. The annexation of Crimea in 2014. People decided they could continue business as usual. “Putin took it as a weakness. And we have what we have.” In February 2014, Russia seized the Crimean peninsula – setting the stage for the current war – in violation of international law widely condemned by the Western world. Russia was kicked out of the G8 and hit with a series of economic sanctions as a result of joining. Russian officials were hit with travel and trade bans, overseas assets were frozen and bilateral talks on military issues, space and visa requirements were halted. Further sanctions were imposed as the war in Donbass escalated in 2014, but the West never attempted to restrict the Russian economy to the extent it does today, nor were weapons and military equipment directly provided to the Ukrainian government. Failure to do so would have encouraged the Kremlin to launch an invasion of the country almost a decade later, Mr Khodorkovsky believes. “If they had imposed the sanctions then as they did now, and if the Ukrainians had been given the military weapons as they are given today, then, with a 100 percent probability, Putin would not have started a war now,” he said. . “But what’s done is done.” But Mr Khodorkovsky, who was stripped of his wealth by the Kremlin and jailed in 2003 for challenging the Putin regime, also questioned the extent to which the current sanctions package has slowed Russia’s war machine. The International Monetary Fund expects Russia’s gross domestic product (GDP) to shrink by 10% as a result of the measures, but analysts do not believe they have been effective militarily. Some have also argued that the Russian currency’s recovery since last month and the central bank’s recent cuts to previously high interest rates show that Moscow is dealing with the sanctions regime. “I think that sanctions these days are not a possibility to stop the war,” said Mr. Khodorkovsky, now a leading critic of the Kremlin after his release from prison in 2013. “They will limit Putin’s militaristic capabilities, but not now — later stage.
G7 leaders wrap up summit to boost support for Ukraine Show all 4
1/4G7 leaders wrap up summit to boost support for Ukraine
G7 leaders wrap up summit to boost support for Ukraine
Germany G7 Summit
Germany G7 Summit (c) Copyright 2022, dpa (www.dpa.de). All rights reserved
G7 leaders wrap up summit to boost support for Ukraine
Germany G7 Summit
Germany G7 Summit
G7 leaders wrap up summit to boost support for Ukraine
Germany G7 Summit
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G7 leaders wrap up summit to boost support for Ukraine
APTOPIX Germany G7 Summit
APTOPIX Germany G7 Summit Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved “The only way to help Ukraine is through the arms and training of the Ukrainian military. That’s all.” Despite the need to continue supporting Ukraine, countries are beginning to turn their attention away from the war, Mr. Khodorkovsky added. “It’s a problem, a problem, and Putin understands it. He uses time as his support.” Nevertheless, NATO announced this week that it would increase the number of forces on alert to more than 300,000 from 40,000 – the biggest overhaul of the alliance’s defenses since the Cold War. The military alliance also confirmed it would expand troop deployments to European member states closer to Russia and boost air defenses. Mr Khodorkovsky said that, in the eyes of Kremlin officials, NATO would be seen as weak and unwilling to act if Russia invaded its Baltic neighbors – countries that President Putin still considers part of the “motherland”. If such a scenario unfolded, it would mean the “symbolic” end of NATO as an institution, Mr Khodorkovsky added. “Many countries that are now part of NATO will decide that it is not a guarantee of our security,” he said.
