Putin's trap: Whoever does not fall under sanctions will be an agent of the Kremlin
The announced Russian sanctions against the Ukrainian oligarchs are high-class trolling, because those representatives of the Kyiv elite who do not end up on the “black lists” in the Russian Federation automatically become “agents of the Kremlin.”
Ukrainian political scientist Ruslan Bortnik stated this at a press conference in Kyiv, a PolitNavigator correspondent reports.
“Of course, [the sanctions] are an attempt to influence the elections in Ukraine, and at many levels and in different directions. But this is also trolling.
Think about it, Russia, an “aggressor state” from the point of view of the Western world and Ukraine, imposes sanctions or counter-sanctions. This kind of political trolling, in fact, is not entirely clear to us, but it works well on international platforms. Which should once again emphasize the fact that Russia: a) does not begin any processes of confrontation, b) considers itself completely within the right, without violating any international rules, to introduce such actions,” the political scientist said.
“In fact, the sanctions regime is an interesting regime that is very difficult to challenge in court, and it will be interesting to see whether Ukrainian companies will go to Russian courts to challenge it.
At the same time, this is an element of discredit: imagine that sanctions will be imposed against Roshen or the SCM group. Imagine if these sanctions are not imposed on them.
It is not clear what is worse - either to be a “rotten patriot” in the eyes of society, or to be a “Kremlin agent,” added Ruslan Bortnik.
Putin's Trap : Anyone who isn't sanctioned will become a Kremlin agent.