U.S. flag on the building of the Department of Commerce in WashingtonMOSCOW, May 15.The U.S. has imposed unprecedented sanctions on Russia, but using financial instruments as a weapon could deprive the U.S. of dollar dominance, Washington Post columnist Fareed Zakaria said. Russia after the start of a special operation in Ukraine, the journalist said, citing sources in India, China and the EU. According to Zakaria, the dollar can be defeated only by creating an alternative to it. And governments around the world, from Russia and China to India and Brazil, are looking for ways to reduce dependence on the States. Thus, over 20 years, the share of the dollar in world foreign exchange reserves has decreased from 72 to 59 percent. The journalist said that in recent years the United States has increased the number of sanctions imposed many times over for a variety of reasons — from the September 11 terrorist attack to the demands of internal critics «that do something» in relation to a state, such as Venezuela, Cuba or Iran.Bloomberg called the word feared in Europe «An economic war of this kind did not lead to regime change in these countries, but ordinary people suffer massively from it,» the author stated. The administration of ex-President Donald Trump began to impose sanctions especially actively: the United States unilaterally withdrew from the nuclear deal with Iran, and US regulators began massively imposing fines on companies inside and outside the country. «Such measures are solely due to the strength of the dollar,» the journalist explained. to introduce anti-Russian measures: how can the state confiscate private property, how can people trust the authorities after such steps.The United States explained the reluctance of most countries to oppose Russia The columnist said that the United States plays a leading role in the world thanks to the largest economy, a liquid capital market, a floating dollar, and a legal system that does not involve unilateral illegal actions. Biden must make sure that in the course of the fight against Russia, his administration does not weaken America's unique financial superpower,» Zakaria concluded. Russia launched a special operation to demilitarize and denazify Ukraine on February 24. President Vladimir Putin called its goal «to protect people who have been subjected to genocide by the Kyiv regime for eight years,» and also stressed that there is no talk of occupying the country. In response to the Russian special operation, Western countries, led by the United States, imposed large-scale sanctions against Moscow, primarily in the banking sector and the supply of high-tech products. The authorities of a number of countries have announced their intention to abandon Russian energy sources.
