Finance & economics | Gaps in the fence

Russia outsmarts Western sanctions—and China is paying attention

How the rise of middle powers helps America’s enemies

Illustration of a red road running through a broken barbed wire fence
Illustration: Carl Godfrey

Nazem Ahmad, an art collector and financier, who owns work by Andy Warhol and Pablo Picasso, has been under American sanctions since 2019. That may sound like a problem, but it has not stopped him from smuggling half a billion or so dollars for Hizbullah, a Lebanese militant group, according to America’s Treasury. He moves art, cash and gems across borders via galleries in the Ivory Coast, family offices in the UAE and portfolio firms in Hong Kong. His financial tapestry is underpinned by bank accounts in America.

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This article appeared in the Finance & economics section of the print edition under the headline “Sanctions, what sanctions?”

From the February 24th 2024 edition

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