From Russia with no love
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine turns one month today, March 24.
So far, the Ukrainian government has not surrendered and Russia has failed to win what was expected to be a quick war.
Several rounds of peace talks have failed to see any breakthrough.
The fallout of the war has of course sent severe repercussions around the world, sending the price of gas soaring and making a variety of goods including fertiliser and animal feed more expensive.
The worst worry of all is that the conflict could lead to a new world war. And several sides fear that if this happens, it would in turn lead to a dreaded nuclear war, which will cause widespread destruction on a scale never seen before and possibly doom our very planet.
Several countries have condemned Moscow and many global brands have pulled out from Russia. Moscow also lost face when the United Nations General Assembly voted 141-5 in an emergency meeting to condemn it for the invasion, with 35 nations abstaining.
Many countries have banned imports of low-cost products and quality goods from Russia, as well as natural gas and oil. The US and Canada have chiefly shut their doors to Russian gas.
Indeed, Moscow is experiencing an unprecedented level of collective boycott that no other country has ever seen. Not even Russian cats and trees have escaped the wrath. They have been banned from international competitions.
Under the sanctions, some 38 countries have closed their airspace to Russian planes.
Worse, Russia has been slapped with trade, investment, education, research, and scientific sanctions.
On top of all this, Russians have been banned from competing in international sporting events, including the FIFA World Cup.
Even Russian porn stars are feeling the heat, having been outlawed on the globally popular OnlyFans platform, while Russian banks have been banished from the SWIFT international information banking network.
Tightening the screws on Russia are two major hacker groups, Anonymous and Cyber Partisans, which have jumped on the bandwagon by attacking Russian websites.
And in another sign of international pressure and displeasure, thousands of foreigners, including Thais, have applied to fight alongside Ukrainian troops to drive attacking Russian soldiers back.
However, it has yet to be seen how the war will unfold and how deeper in crisis Russia will plunge because of the mounting international sanctions.
