A perilous unknown

Putin claims the West wants to “finish off” Russia. [View in browser]( [Bloomberg]( Follow Us [Get the newsletter]( Vladimir Putin today did what Russia spent months denying he would: launching a full-scale attack on Ukraine. The West is threatening massive retaliatory sanctions and Ukraine has vowed to defend itself against Russia’s vastly more powerful military. China pointedly blamed the U.S. and refused to condemn Moscow. In a televised address justifying the invasion, Putin ranged across decades of highly emotive history for Russians. He evoked Nazi Germany’s 1941 invasion of the Soviet Union and said expansion of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization posed a similar threat to Russia’s “very existence.” Key reading: - [Putin Orders Russian Attacks Across Ukraine in ‘Dark Day’]( - [European Energy Prices Soar After Russia Attacks Ukraine Targets]( - [Why Donetsk and Luhansk Matter to Putin and the West: QuickTake]( - [Ukraine Asks West to Impose More Sanctions on Russia Quickly]( - [U.S. Eyes Oil Reserves Release as Prices Rise on Ukraine]( - Follow the latest with our [rolling coverage]( “That’s the red line we spoke about many times,” the president said. “They crossed it.” NATO, which describes itself as a defensive alliance that poses no threat to Russia, responded by saying it would continue to deploy additional land, air and sea forces to protect the alliance’s eastern wing. Putin accused the West of trying to “finish off” Russia after the Soviet Union’s collapse and “impose on us their pseudo-values that would corrode us.” He said his goal was the “demilitarization” of Ukraine and made clear he wants to remove President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s government in Kyiv. Bloomberg Bloomberg It’s hard to exaggerate the significance of this moment. For all his criticism of the West, Putin has carefully weighed the risks of conflict in the past, from the war with Georgia in 2008 to military intervention in Syria. Now he’s gone much further, unleashing what could become Europe’s most serious conflict since World War II to unseat the government of a country on the border with NATO. U.S. President Joe Biden plans talks today with Group of Seven counterparts and European Union leaders will meet to discuss their response. Warnings and arguments have been replaced by force and fighting. Nobody can yet say how and when this may end. — [Anthony Halpin]( A woman and child peer out of the window of a bus today as they leave Sievierodonetsk in eastern Ukraine. Photographer: Vadim Ghirda/AP Click [here]( to follow Bloomberg Politics on Twitter and share this newsletter with others too. They can sign up [here](. Global Headlines Persistent skepticism | U.S. officials debated and crafted a punishing array of economic sanctions to try to scare Putin off invading Ukraine, but as [Nick Wadhams]( reports, many [shared]( the same view from the beginning: The strategy probably wouldn't work. Independent stance | China bucked the near-global consensus by refusing to condemn Russia’s attack on Ukraine, instead urging [restraint]( by “all parties” and blaming the U.S. for stoking tensions in the region. During a tense news briefing today, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying admonished a reporter for “aggressive” questioning and repeatedly sidestepped queries about whether Beijing considered Putin’s move an invasion. As Russian forces attack targets across Ukraine, commodity traders are watching the country’s vast network of infrastructure that’s key to [supplying]( gas, crops and steel to Europe and beyond. Any disruption poses risks of shortages, and with commodity prices already around record highs, war in Ukraine will add to inflation pressure across the global economy. Market rout | Russia’s invasion [wiped]( out about $250 billion in Russian stock market value, forcing a second trading halt by the Moscow Exchange, and the ruble sank to a record low as investors braced for the toughest round of Western sanctions yet. The Bank of Russia said it will intervene in the foreign exchange market for the first time in years to tame volatility in financial markets. Best of Bloomberg Opinion - [Russia Needs Cash More Than Europe Needs Its Gas: David Fickling]( - [Vladimir Putin Is Playing With Fire: Clara Ferreira Marques]( - [Which Sanctions Would Hurt Putin the Most?: Timothy O'Brien]( Price shock | Oil’s surge past $105 a barrel for the first time since 2014 represents a [double-blow]( to the world economy by further denting growth prospects and driving up inflation. As [Enda Curran]( and [Rich Miller]( report, that’s a worrying combination for the U.S. Fed and fellow central banks as they seek to contain the strongest price pressures in decades without derailing recoveries from the pandemic. Explainers you can use - [How Nord Stream 2 Got Stuck in Russia-Ukraine Limbo]( - [How Malaysia’s 1MDB Scandal Shook the Financial World]( - [The Sticky Issues Holding Up a New Iran Nuclear Deal]( Bloomberg TV and Radio air Balance of Power with [David Westin]( weekdays from 12 to 1pm ET, with a second hour on Bloomberg Radio from 1 to 2pm ET. You can watch and listen on Bloomberg channels and online [here]( or check out prior episodes and guest clips [here](. News to Note - Canada is [lifting]( the emergency powers it enacted more than a week ago to quell street protests, with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau saying they’re no longer needed. - Peru’s economic expansion came to a halt at the close of 2021, signaling that one of the world’s fastest post-pandemic recoveries may be [stagnating]( amid increasing political infighting. - The Biden administration announced new [measures]( today to ease supply-chain disruptions, including allowing the government to pay more for locally produced goods and reduce manufacturers’ reliance on foreign imports. - Twitter issued [advice]( on using its service in conflict zones or high-risk areas, including a suggestion to deactivate accounts if that’s the safest approach. And finally ... Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich may be at risk of U.K. [sanctions]( because of the situation in Ukraine. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson mistakenly said in Parliament that the Chelsea football club owner had already been sanctioned and, while his spokesman later corrected the error, the nation’s foreign secretary declined to rule it out in television interviews. Roman Abramovich. Photographer: Simon Dawson/Bloomberg Like Balance of Power? [Get unlimited access to Bloomberg.com](, where you'll find trusted, data-based journalism in 120 countries around the world and expert analysis from exclusive daily newsletters. You received this message because you are subscribed to Bloomberg's Balance of Power newsletter. [Unsubscribe]( | [Bloomberg.com]( | [Contact Us]( [Ads Powered By Liveintent]( | [Ad Choices]( Bloomberg L.P. 731 Lexington, New York, NY, 10022