Wonkbook: The effects of the new sanctions against Russia
Puneet Killipara
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Wonkbook’s Number of the Day: 2,700. That's the number of air missions the U.S. Navy and Air Force had flown in Iraq even before President Obama's announcement of heightened military action against the Islamic State.
Wonkbook’s Chart of the Day: These states cut their incarceration rates and still had a drop in crime.
Wonkbook's Top 5 Stories: (1) High-powered Russia sanctions' effects; (2) looking back on two 20-year-old crime laws; (3) is ISIS an NSA game-changer?; (4) women's health issues and the elections — now versus 2012; and (5) Hillary sounds like she's running.
1. Top story: The effects of the new sanctions against Russia
U.S. will watch Russia closely before lifting latest sanctions. "U.S. and European officials have said that the latest round of sanctions against Russia could be removed if the peace process outlined with Ukraine is completed. But in Washington, the Obama administration made it quite clear that before any sanctions are removed, it wants to see the completion of all 12 points of the peace plan outlined in Minsk, Belarus, and the complete removal of Russian material and forces from Ukraine....The latest measures...block Western energy majors from contributing technology, goods or services to Russian efforts to extract oil from the Arctic, deep offshore fields and shale formations....Tougher financial sanctions from the U.S. and EU will restrict all but short-term financing to the biggest state-controlled banks that dominate Russia’s financial sector, as well as some defense and industrial firms." William Mauldin in The Wall Street Journal.
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