The West’s single biggest failure after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was the fear that radical action - like shutting down Russia’s oil exports with a blockade - would spike global oil prices, driving the world into recession. That’s what led to the G7 oil price cap, which tried to have it both ways: keep Russian oil flowing to global markets, but set an administered price that limits the amount of cash Russia gets. This was smart in theory - I was a big supporter of the idea myself - it’s just that it failed in practice. The complexity of enforcement meant the G7 cap was undermined from the start by Western ship ... (full story)