The Facts
Alleged long-time girlfriend of Vladimir Putin and rumored mother of his three children, Alina Kabaeva, has reportedly been excluded from several rounds of sanctions placed on Russia since the start of the war in Ukraine.
Kabaeva is believed to be involved with the Kremlin and their effort to hide Putin's wealth and international assets. The US Treasury Dept. had reportedly prepared a sanctions package against her, but it was canceled by the National Security Council before being announced.
The Spin
Pro-establishment narrative
Sanctioning Kabaeva would deal a heavy blow to Putin and the Kremlin. She may not be able to prevent Putin from waging war, but the move would impact the pair from both a personal and financial standpoint, and apply important pressure that might just bring him to the negotiating table.
Establishment-critical narrative
At best, the focus on sanctioning and seizing assets from Putin's inner circle is a distraction from formulating a more realistic strategy to defeat Russia and restore Ukraine. At worst, it's evidence of clear hypocrisy, given the US wasn't sanctioned for invading Iraq for equally unjustified reasons, or Israel for invading and annexing Arab lands. Either way, it doesn't help Ukraine.
