Russia’s deep integration in the global energy market is the result of a long and complex interaction of many actors in the value chain. Therefore, so-called moral clarity will require precise, case-by-case analysis of real-world facts. The outcome remains to be seen.

The Ukraine conflict will hit low-income developing countries with particular ferocity. These countries are not in Europe, nor are they involved in the war. Yet their people will suffer soaring energy costs, hunger, poverty and financial ruin.

Dual circulation is set to reorient China’s economy as Beijing rethinks how it will engage with the world.

In early March, Premier Li Keqiang announced that China is targeting GDP growth of “about 5.5%” this year. That would be ambitious even without Russia’s war against Ukraine and the attendant increases in global energy and food prices. Back in January, for example, the International Monetary Fund forecast that the Chinese economy would grow by only 4.8% in 2022. And in 2019, the last full year before the COVID-19 pandemic, GDP increased by just under 6%.

The financial sanctions that are being placed on Russia have put the focus onto the over reliance of global trade on the U.S. dollar, especially when it comes to precious oil. Now, Saudi Arabia is preparing for the first time ever to start pricing some oil exports in the yuan which could lead to massive ripple effects in the energy market.

Punishments of Russia cut both ways for the West and may even be self-defeating. The European and U.S. economies are suffering a backlash in rising energy prices, shrinking corporate profits and inflation-induced economic hardships.

American policy in the Middle East has Saudi Arabia thinking about selling oil to China in Chinese yuan rather than U.S. dollars. The shift would weaken the dollar’s dominant position in the global oil market.

Growth of 5.5 percent growth is possible and consistent with the country’s economic expansion in recent years. One key path forward is the digital economy. Green development will help define China’s high-quality economic future.

After trade wars and the pandemic depression, aggressive sanctions and rate hikes will further derail economic prospects in the U.S., China and worldwide.

Asia’s RCEP - a China-led trade agreement - could set up a stable future for the continent despite today’s conflicts. Here’s how RCEP is re-shaping Asia’s destiny.