Inside Politics: Calls for Johnson to get tougher on Russia

How many Russian oligarchs and banks must you impose sanctions against to dissuade Putin from starting a full-scale war with Ukraine? More than eight, appeared to be the swift and emphatic answer yesterday as the Russian president got “permission” from parliament to use the armed forces abroad – just hours after the UK announced a series of measures targeting bit hitters close to the regime and the institutions handling their cash. The west continues to insist that it is united in its response to Russian aggression; moves by Germany to put the brakes on the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline and the US’s own series of sanctions announced by Joe Biden last night suggest this is indeed the case. MPs on both sides of the House of Commons called for tougher action and more sanctions now. But does anybody really believe that penalising a few more billionaires and financial institutions in a kleptocracy will be enough to stop a man who believes he is on a messianic mission to restore his homeland to greatness? Putin, well versed in displays of raw power in the chess game that is geostrategic politics, is now moving blood supplies to the border, according to US intelligence. With each passing day, it is increasingly difficult to see how this quagmire can be resolved. Putin wants one thing and one thing only. So far Ukraine and Nato are not giving it to him.

Commons actions gets underway at 11.30am with women and women and equalities questions. PMQs at noon is likely to be dominated by the Ukraine crisis. Following the session is any urgent questions or statements. It is also Opposition Day in the Commons with Labour expected to lead debates on Russian aggression, illicit finance and the impact of poor-quality, non-commissioned exempt accommodation.

Coming up:

– Foreign secretary Liz Truss on BBC Radio 4 Today at 8.17am

– Shadow foreign secretary David Lammy on LBC at 8.50am

Daily Briefing

MEEK SANCTIONS: The Ukraine crisis continues to dominate the news agenda and leads most major outlets this morning, with several focusing on warnings by Joe Biden, the US president, that Russia remains poised to attack while others focus on the series of sanctions issued by both London and Washington. Boris Johnson immediately came under pressure to get tougher on the Kremlin as he announced that Rossiya Bank, IS Bank, General Bank, Promsvyazbank and the Black Sea Bank – all of which have little presence in the UK – will have their assets frozen, after Putin recognised two rebel held regions in the east of Ukraine as independent before sending in troops. But critics – including longtime Putin adversary Bill Browder, the financier behind the Magnitsky Act targeting Russian human rights abusers – dismissed the package as under-powered. Keir Starmer warned against the slow application of deterrent measures: “If we do not respond with a full set of sanctions now, Putin will once again take away the message that the benefits of aggression outweigh the costs.” Johnson said it remained important to hold some sanctions back, adding the measures announced were the “first barrage” of penalties.

WHAT DID JOE DO?: In a televised address to the nation last night, Biden announced the first tranche of sanctions “to impose costs on Russia in response to their actions”. “We’re implementing full blocking sanctions on two large Russian financial institutions, the VEB [a Russian state development corporation] and their military bank [Promsvyazbank],” he said. Biden added that “comprehensive sanctions on Russia’s sovereign debt” means that “we’ve cut off Russia’s government from Western financing”. The problem for Biden, the US, the west and most importantly Ukraine is that Russia is confident it can ride out the hit from further sanctions. Russia has been living under financial and economic sanctions since 2014 when the west attempted to punish it for annexing Crimea and for its role in the conflict in Ukraine. Moscow’s currency reserves have surged more than 75 per cent since 2015 and now stand at more than $630 billion. “Thank god we have enough forex liquidity and enough forex reserves,” finance minister Anton Siluanov told reporters last week. “They say we have a financial shield in the form of gold and forex reserves, budget surplus and [budget] rule, low debt.” Hopes of a diplomatic breakthrough in the crisis were dealt another hammer blow after the White House pulled the pin on a potential summit between Biden and Putin. The Russian president says he is still open to “solutions” but that the interests of Russia and the security of its people are non-negotiable. We’ll have all the latest updates on our liveblog.

HOW COULD SANCTIONS HIT UK?: As Inside Politics reported yesterday, Russian troops crossing the border into Ukraine sent the cost of oil soaring to its highest level in some seven years and Moscow has since warned that gas prices in Europe could double following the blocking of Nord Stream 2, as it sought to issue a stark reminder that sanctions can work in both directions. And experts fear that a rapid escalation in penalties against Russia could further deepen the cost of living crisis here in the UK, pushing energy bills and inflation to new peaks and keeping prices higher for longer. While measures announced by Johnson on Tuesday are not expected to impact UK households, it is feared that further sanctions could put already stretched gas and oil supplies under further strain, although there are major questions marks over whether politicians have the resolve to follow through on their rhetoric. Russia supplies 10 per cent of the world’s oil, and 40 per cent of Europe’s gas. Russia and Ukraine are also the source of a quarter of global wheat exports.

MILITARY APPROVAL: Sandwiched in between the announcements in London (the EU also issued sanctions and Australia and Japan have since followed suit) and Washington, the Russian parliament agreed to a request from Putin to use the country’s military forces abroad – a move that is being viewed as yet another sign that Moscow is ramping up preparations to launch a full scale attack on Ukraine. Putin made his request in a letter to the upper house of parliament, the Federation Council, to formalise any Russian military deployment. As you might expect, the move was quickly, and unanimously, rubber-stamped later on Tuesday and came into immediate effect. The parliamentary approval came just hours after the US said an invasion of Ukraine had begun. Shortly after the vote, Mr Putin laid out three conditions to end the crisis which threatens to plunge Europe back into war, the potential for massive number casualties, energy shortages and global economic chaos.The Russian leader called for international recognition of Crimea, which was annexed in 2104, as part of Russia, an end to Ukraine’s Nato membership bid as well as a halt to weapons shipments.

PARTYGATE UPDATE: Away from the Ukraine crisis, a leak to ITV News revealed that Downing Street staff issued with Met Police questionnaires about lockdown-breaching drinks gatherings were asked to name a “lawful exception” or “reasonable excuse” as to why they attended said events. The questionnaire says that those accused are being given an opportunity to provide “a written statement under caution,” which means Johnson could well be the first PM to be questioned by police under caution. The document reportedly tells recipients they “do not have to say anything but it may harm your defence if you do not mention when questioned something which you later rely on in court”, and advises them to “ensure the caution is read and understand prior to any answers to questions being provided”. Paul Brand, the ITV journalist who broke the story, said legal experts and former officers told him the question may be easy for “lawyers to bat away”. Angela Rayner, Labour deputy leader, said it was an “embarrassment” to the UK that its PM is being interviewed under caution.

LIVING WITH COVID: The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has announced it will scrap its weekend coronavirus updates, in what appears to be another part of the government’s push for England to begin “living with Covid”. Starting this week, Covid case and death figures will only be published on weekdays, with Saturday and Sunday’s data being fed into Monday’s update from now on. Previously, the UKHSA gave these updates seven days a week – they include case, death and vaccine figures from the last 24-hour period. In a statement, published on the gov.uk website, it was announced: “The dashboard will be updated as usual from Monday to Friday.“Daily cases and deaths by report date published on Mondays will include figures from the weekend. These will not be separated out to show daily figures for Saturday and Sunday.”

“You don’t need blood unless you are planning on starting a war.”

Biden says US intelligence shows Russia moving blood and medical supplies to border.

“The leaked questionnaire confirms that respondents are replying ‘under caution’ - making Boris Johnson the first Prime Minister to be asked police questions in this way. But legal experts and former police officers tell us the questions may be easy for lawyers to bat away.”

ITV’s Paul Brand on partygate questionnaire.

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