America prepares the “mother of all sanctions” against Russia

HAVING ALL but ruled out engaging militarily with Russia, directly at least, were it to invade Ukraine, the West’s main weapons are economic. This week America and Britain vowed measures on a scale never seen before. “The mother of all sanctions”, was how Bob Menendez, chairman of the US Senate’s foreign-relations committee, described the package being assembled by the chamber. President Joe Biden says Vladimir Putin, his Russian counterpart, has “never seen sanctions like the ones I promised will be imposed”. For sanctions to work, though, Western allies will need to show unity, and be willing to shoulder some economic pain themselves. History suggests that this may be their greatest challenge.