Sanctions on Putin will hit Britain’s cost of living. Are we ready?

No British soldiers will go to fight in Ukraine. The UK’s military involvement will be limited to weapons shipments and more forces to Nato’s eastern flank to try to deter further Russian revanchism. Despite this, domestic opinion in Britain — and other western countries — will be hugely significant in this conflict.

The West is trying to use sanctions to influence Vladimir Putin’s behaviour. However, there are clear limits to deterrence through economic measures, as Niall Ferguson writes in his article. The threat of sanctions was not enough to stop Putin unilaterally recognising the two breakaway republics in the Donbas, Donetsk and Luhansk, and agreeing to send troops there.

At the moment, Putin is convinced that he can weather whatever sanctions the West imposes. The British government’s initial measures will not have alarmed the Kremlin. Boris Johnson stresses that these are just the first tranche of the UK’s sanctions response.