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> were also the economists who claimed that sanctions would destroy the Russian economy. This is _very much_ up for debate. It's been a couple of years since R
by kivle 2y ago
> were also the economists who claimed that sanctions would destroy the Russian economy.
This is _very much_ up for debate. It's been a couple of years since Russia went completely dark on publishing key numbers on their economy. [This was three years ago.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZRgS6gpiMX0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZRgS6gpiMX0). They had a large war chest ready before they went to war (part of which has been frozen in the west), and there are a lot of signs that they are on their last stretch before things go really bad for them.
Predicting _when_ things go bad is very difficult, so I do not hold that against said economists. The most telling sign is that the first thing the Russians ask for is for sanctions relief before any peace negotiations.
- NickC25 2y agoI mean it's estimated that 1/5th of Russians have no access to indoor plumbing. This is a country where its leader/president/dictator/mafia don/caporegime is quite literally a multitrillionaire. Russia asking for sanctions relief is just relieving pressure for Putin as the people who keep him in power (the oligarchs) need access to the money they've stolen and want to be able to buy more yachts and football teams. Putin and his circle, as well as the oligarch class, don't give a fuck about the average Russian.