The gradual halt of Russian hydrocarbon imports is feeding the increase in energy prices, thereby creating difficulties for the most industrialized countries and fueling inflation. In a post-Covid context where national debts are at a very high level, governments have reduced room to maneuver, while the discontent among populations hit by inflation is already benefiting populists.

Norbert Gaillard is an economist and independent consultant. His last book is Moral Hazard: A Financial, Legal, and Economic Perspective, Abingdon & New York, Routledge, 2022.

Article published in Politique étrangère, Vol. 87, No. 4, Winter 2022.