In his State of the Union address, President Biden described the global response to Putin’s invasion of Ukraine as ‘a wall of strength he never imagined’, with sanctions crucial to that strength. If only it were so. The truth reveals a dramatically less comforting reality. The USA’s own attempts at building a wall on its southern borders should be proof enough that a ‘wall of strength’ always has its weaknesses and get-arounds.
Imagine a trade war or foreign policy confrontation in which one European nation was to be sanctioned. That sanction would be simple to circumvent. As all EU countries are in a common customs alliance, the targeted country would simply channel imports, exports, and the flow of finance via a neighboring EU state. The impact would be a brief period of awkward and momentarily painful transition, leading to a new normal accompanied by mild logistical inconvenience.
