USA

Question 1

USA Perspective

Outline

Antony Blinken Feb 2023 quote

National Security Strategy (October 2022)

Answer 1

The United States views Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as a grave violation of international law, national sovereignty, and territorial integrity, posing a direct threat to European and global security.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken (February 2023): “This is not just about Ukraine; it’s about the principles at the very heart of the international system… It’s about whether powerful countries can simply try to redraw the borders of others by force.”

National Security Strategy (October 2022): The document explicitly states that Russia “poses an immediate threat to the free international system, violating the core tenets of the UN Charter.”

Question 2

Interests

Answer 2

1. Upholding International Law and Norms: Deterring future acts of aggression by demonstrating that such actions have severe consequences. This reinforces the US-led liberal international order.
2. Weakening Russia’s Ability to Project Power: Aiming to degrade Russia’s military and economic capacity to act as a destabilizing force.

Question 3

Response 1. Providing Aid

Answer 3

Under President Joe Biden, the United States committed over $66.5 billion in security assistance to Ukraine following Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.
This support encompassed advanced air defence systems, artillery, drones, and intelligence sharing, reflecting a robust stance on defending Ukraine’s sovereignty and reinforcing NATO unity. (U.S. Department of Defense)

Question 4

Response 2. Sanctions aligned with the EU

2,000 individuals and entities

By March 2022

Answer 4

The US has sanctioned over 2,000 individuals and entities associated with Russia’s aggression, including major financial institutions like Sberbank and VTB Bank, and key figures within the Russian government and elite (Source: US Department of the Treasury).

By March 2022, the U.S. had frozen over $300 billion in Russian assets (U.S. Treasury, 2022).

Question 5

Sanctions effectiveness

$300 billion

GDP 2.1%

Sanctions leakage

Answer 5

Sanctions severely disrupted Russia’s financial system, the Russian Central Bank lost access to $300 billion of its foreign reserves (U.S. Treasury Sanctions Report, 2023).

Russia’s GDP contracted by 2.1% in 2022 and stagnated at near-zero growth in 2023–24 (IMF World Economic Outlook, 2024).

However, sanctions leakage via China, Turkey, and the UAE limited total isolation, with 40% of sanctioned goods reportedly re-entering Russia through third-party states (European Council on Foreign Relations, 2024).

Question 6

Aid effectiveness

Answer 6

U.S. military support decisively improved Ukraine’s battlefield resilience. A U.S. Defense Department report found that 80% of Ukraine’s successful counter-battery strikes in 2023 were conducted using American-supplied HIMARS and radar systems (Pentagon Battlefield Assessment, 2024).

Question 7

Impacts of interest on the conflict

Answer 7

1. Upholding International Law and Norms –> Support for Ukraine to prevent Russian aggression –> prevented Russian advances
2. Weakening Russia’s ability to project power –> Sanctions onto Russia –> weakened their economy –> Yet Russia was able to find trade with 3rd parties –> little impact on consequences of war –> Greater relations with China tension between East and West