Punishments devised for Putin will fall short

From Mr William N Kring.

Sir, I could not help but chuckle when I heard the news that the US, along with Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, and Italy, had (albeit temporarily) kicked Russia out of the Group of Eight because of its annexation of Crimea.

First, the move is purely symbolic and ipso facto meaningless. In the wake of the financial crisis of 2008, the G8 has become increasingly inconsequential, as it has been succeeded by the more diverse Group of 20. For example, the 2014 G8 meeting, which was scheduled for later this year in Sochi, Russia, was to focus on “Risk Management for Sustainable Growth in a Safe World.” In contrast, the G20 summit will focus on the global economy, trade, development, global institutions and financial system reform.

Second, Russia knows this move is meaningless. Foreign minister Sergei Lavrov demonstrated this by calling the G8 an informal institution that does not deal with consequential economic and financial questions. He went on to imply that you cannot get kicked out of a group that really is not a group to begin with.

Ouch! It seems that the “west” would be better served to lower its voice and reach for a bigger stick!

William N Kring, Graduate Student, Brown University, Providence, RI, US