by Richard Lein | AFP | July 30, 2014
Moscow dismisses Western sanctions as mostly bark, but analysts warned the latest measures announced by the EU and US will also bite the Russian economy, which is teetering on the edge of recession.
Washington and Brussels announced on Tuesday the strongest sanctions on Russia since the Cold War over Moscow’s annexation of Crimea and support for separatists in Ukraine.
The US prohibited three leading Russian banks from raising anything but short-term funding on US markets.
The EU also began imposing so-called sector sanctions, crimping access of Russian state-controlled banks to European capital markets.
It also banned future arms sales to Russia, restricted the export of goods with both defence and civilian applications, and clamped down on technology transfers, especially in the energy sector.
Russian officials have remained defiant, saying the sanctions would not sway policy.
