title: THE INFLUENCE OF THE EU'S COLLECTIVE IDENTITY ON SMART SANCTIONS IMPOSED ON RUSSIA AND THEIR EFFECT ON RUSSIAN FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS
abstract: Beginning in early 2014, the EU introduced and extended a range of smart sanctions against Russia in protest at Russian involvement in destabilizing Ukraine and violation of Ukraine's territorial integrity. By utilizing theoretical elements of constructivism with process tracing method, this thesis examines the influence of the EU’s collective identity on smart sanctions imposed on Russia. The analysis finds that the EU’s “collective identity” stipulated the “objective interests” and “subjective