Photo’s source: www.globeecho.com
The Russian-Ukrainian crisis, which started with the annexation of Crimea by Russia in 2014, has reached the level of a war in the last weeks. While Russia, together with Belarus, started military exercises from both land and sea by massing troops on the Ukrainian border, EU and NATO member states started diplomacy traffic.
Although Putin has denied plans to attack Ukraine for months, he announced on the morning of February 24 that he had started a “special military operation” in Ukraine’s Donbas region. Then, missile attacks began on points across the country, including near the capital, Kyiv. Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky responded by declaring martial law in the country, breaking diplomatic ties with Russia, and ordering general mobilization. While more than 10 thousand Russian soldiers have lost their lives so far, there are more than 2000 civilian casualties in Ukraine.
The occupation has drawn widespread international condemnation, including new sanctions against Russia, as thousands of Ukrainians and refugees in the country seek refuge in other bordering countries. While the two most common credit cards in the world, MasterCard and Visa, announced that they stopped their activities in Russia due to the sanctions imposed after the invasion of Ukraine, Japanese automakers recently announced that they will suspend their activities in Russia. In addition, Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Union (EU) Commission, announced that they will provide 500 million Euros of humanitarian aid to Ukraine, which is at war with Russia. However, one of the most effective among these sanctions was the decision to remove Russia from the SWIFT system.
The most accurate definition for SWIFT, which is the abbreviation of Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication, stands out as an international payments network.
While the consequence of the crisis is not yet predictable, the 2nd round of negotiations between the two countries in Brest, on the border of Belarus, on the evening of March 2, was also inconclusive. During the negotiations, a joint decision was reached on the creation of humanitarian corridors only for the evacuation of civilians, and it was announced that the third negotiation would be held.
If we think about before the occupation, it can be said that Putin, who is famous for being a chess master, is seen as seriously successful in the world’s public opinion. However, the current situation in the country is such that it will make Russia forget the 20-year success of Putin while pushing Russia back 10 years economically. The fact that Russia is out of the SWIFT system may cause both commercial and financial services to be largely stopped in the country. This will increase the economic pressure on Russia and even if Russia succeeds militarily in the first place, the real difficulties for the country will begin later.
The interlocking of the EU and NATO will put Russia in a more difficult situation. The military support that has already come to Ukraine from Western countries is also proof for this. Finally, the enforcements to be imposed on Russia may have a serious impact on the Russian financial system and indirectly affect the trust of the Russian people in the banking system. Recently, the Central Bank of Russia increased its interest rates from %9.5 to %20. Despite this, the Ruble has monetary depreciation %30 against the Dollar.
This article was edited using the data from the Anadolu Agency, Euronews Turkey, Middle East Eye, Reuters.com, and BBC News.
