Russias economy is about the size of Spain tho that doesn’t account for the shadow economy run by the oligarchs but even that is probably negligible compared to

Russias economy is about the size of Spain tho that doesn’t account for the shadow economy run by the oligarchs but even that is probably negligible compared to the scale of national economies. Russia is piss poor and it’s probably the best example of how much the wealth of a nation is dependent on its government and its civic institutions. Russia isn’t just rich in a single resource and it has a highly educated and culturally rich society. It has all the ingredients to be the most prosperous nation on the planet and yet nearly ever since it’s inception as a state (and I mean every iteration of it) it has had its head so high up its ass that it’s a world power nearly solely due to its remarkable ability to fail upwards.