Answering a media question yesterday about Russia’s response to the U.S. use of escalating tariffs and how it affects nations of the Global South, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova remarked insightfully, that sanctions and restrictions have become a “defining feature” of the current historical period. Because U.S. dominance has become eroded, the country has resorted to a neocolonial agenda, unable to accept its loss of power. And those nations that choose an independent course on the international stage are hit with “politically motivated economic pressure and protectionism,” which runs counter to the free trade that Western nations claim to defend.
Zakharova particularly pointed to the case of Russia’s “strategic partner” Brazil as a victim of current U.S. policy, which is infringing on Brazilian sovereignty and that of other nations, interfering in their internal affairs. The risks? It can lead to slower global economic growth, disruption of supply chains, and deepening the “fragmentation of the international economic system.”
