International Sanctions Threaten Russian Economy

The Russian ruble lost roughly 30% of its value on Monday after countries around the world issued sweeping economic sanctions in response to Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine. 

While Russia’s central bank had a plan to prop up the value of its currency, international sanctions blocked it from accessing much of its foreign-held reserve funds. Several key Russian banks were cut out of SWIFT, the worldwide messaging system which banks rely on for international transactions. As a result of these sanctions, major financial services like Visa, MasterCard, Apple Pay and Google Pay were unavailable to many Russians. Sanctions didn’t just come from the West — countries sanctioning Russia included Japan, Taiwan, Australia, and more. Even China, often seen as Russia’s best hope for an economic lifeline, implemented some restrictions; two state-run Chinese banks blocked funding for Russian commodity purchases on Friday. 

Coverage of Russia’s financial struggle was widespread on Tuesday, particularly in business-focused outlets. The story prompted some moderately sensationalist language, including “Russia's economy gets nailed” from Fox Business (Lean Right) and “sanctions slam its economy” from CNN Business (Lean Left).