Too Long; Didn't Read
International sanctions are designed to hurt the country as a whole, and as a result, innocent people and small businesses are the most affected.
They rarely hurt those who are ‘in charge.’
Ukrainian and Russian people woke up to a war that neither of them agreed to. Russia faced immediate international sanctions, falling stock markets and crashing national currency that exceeded 100 rubles per one US dollar (trading at 116 at time of writing).
Five major Russian banks, including the largest and state-backed banks like Sberbank and VTB, fell under sanctions. They’re also being excluded from the SWIFT system.