With the Russian-Ukraine conflict largely dominating headlines over the past two weeks, it’s hard for us to ignore the limited extent of what Western media outlets claim robust sanctions can achieve. We also take a look into the increasing hesitancy of America’s traditional allies, particularly in the Middle East, to get fully on board with such measures, given the increased economic and political clout of China and Russia and Washington’s limited desire and ability to strong-arm its partners in signing up for the effort.