Bloomberg Businessweek

8

 AGENDA

○ Trump’s administration is pursuing ways to punish

Russia. But he needs to speak up to make them efective

THE BLOOMBERG VIEW

For more commentary, go to bloomberg.com/opinion ILLUSTRATION BY EVAN COHEN

The Trump administration’s new sanctions against Russia,

imposed in response to the poisoning in the U.K. of a former

Russian spy and his daughter, are welcome. They are also

confusing, contrasting as they do the words and behavior of

President Donald Trump himself, who has repeatedly and

publicly lavished praise on Russian President Vladimir Putin.

One hopes the real U.S. strategy is to stand strong against

Russia’s transgressions. But unless Trump speaks forcefully,

no amount of punishment will deter Putin from his agenda.

The Trump administration has found many ways to push

back against Russia. It’s built on sanctions begun by Barack

Obama, approved the sale of so-called lethal defensive weapons

to Ukraine, struck Syrian military sites after Syrian President

Bashar al-Assad used chemical weapons, and expelled scores

of Russian diplomats from the U.S. The Department of Justice

recently indicted 13 Russians for cyberhacking. The administra-

tion also rightly opposes the Nord Stream2 pipeline that would

carry gas directly from Russia to Germany.

Equally important, many of the U.S. penalties imposed

on Russia have been smartly targeted at members of Putin’s

inner circle, leading inancial institutions, and major indus-

tries; the International Monetary Fund says that Western

Making Sanctions Work

sanctions could shrink the Russian economy by 10 percent.

However, on the issue of Russian election meddling,

Trump has publicly sided with Putin against U.S. intelligence

agencies. He’s also denied that Russia is an American foe and

has called the news media “the real enemy of the people.”

He’s lauded Russia’s “cooperation” in Syria, which consists

of propping up a murderous dictator, attacking U.S.-backed

rebels, and allowing Iran to set up a proxy force on Israel’s

border. He’s consistently snubbed the U.S.’s most important

European allies. He still refuses to disclose what he and Putin

discussed behind closed doors last month in Helsinki.

Little wonder that when Secretary of State Mike Pompeo

appeared recently before the Senate Foreign Relations

Committee, its chairman, Republican Bob Corker of

Tennessee, asked bluntly: “Why does he say these things?”

Trump’s rhetorical contradicting of U.S. policy has real con-

sequences. It undermines sanctions, for instance. While these

measures have some direct efects, as in Iran, they work mainly

by marking a state as a global pariah. They have a strong efect

only if they are accompanied by clear moral condemnation and

an efort to pressure the ofending country to change its ways.

The sanctions prompted by the poisoning of the former

Russian spy, Sergei Skripal, will inevitably need shoring up.

Unless Russia proves it has abandoned its chemical and biolog-

ical weapons programs, the administration will need to follow

through with additional punishments. Trump’s job is to back

up the sanctions. His administration cannot make them work

without his public support.

Although the Atlantic hurricane season oicially runs from

June 1 to Nov. 30, the most active period begins on Aug. 

and typically peaks in mid-September. The National

Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicts as many

as 13 storms this year, down from 17 in 2017.

⊲ On Aug. 20, Venezuela

will lop five zeros of

denominations of the bolívar

and peg its value to its Petro

cryptocurrency in a bid to

quell hyperinflation.

⊲ Cigna shareholders

are likely to approve its

purchase of Express

Scripts on Aug. 24, now

that investor Carl Icahn has

dropped his opposition.

⊲ Honda begins a recall

of more than 300,

vehicles in China on Aug. 

to fix flaws in some engines

and braking systems.

⊲ Liberal groups plan rallies

for Aug. 26 to persuade U.S.

senators to vote against

Brett Kavanaugh’s Supreme

Court confirmation.

⊲ From Aug. 20-23, the

U.S. Trade Representative’s

oice will hold hearings on

a proposed 10 percent tarif

on an additional $200 billion

of Chinese goods.

⊲ Greece will successfully

exit its bailout agreement

with the European Union on

Aug. 20. The country has

had three rescue packages

since 2010.

⊲ The Calm Before the Storms

Bloomberg Businessweek August 20, 2018