Post by Odysseus on Oct 7, 2023 7:08:14 GMT
Vladimir Putin has fully transitioned the Russian economy toward wartime production, betting his country's financial and manufacturing systems can outlast the West's until Russia sees a military victory in Ukraine.
As the Kremlin continues pumping money into its fragile but booming economy, an expert told Insider Putin's grip on the financial levers of the country also serves to prevent civil unrest that could lead to his ouster.
Insider previously reported Putin has boosted his country's production of military equipment and subsidized mortgages to keep the economy stable during the first year and a half of the war. In addition, the Russian state has responded to the inflated value of the ruble by raising pensions, salaries, and other benefits for people who are not well-off. At the same time, household consumption, real estate, and business activity have fallen in Russia since the invasion of Ukraine began.
Putin said Thursday the country will continue to increase its production of military equipment "not by some percent, but by several times," indicating the Russian president is settling in for a long war, The Wall Street Journal reported, which some warn will have dire future effects.
"The longer the war lasts, the more addicted the economy will become to military spending, raising the risk of stagnation or even outright crisis once the conflict is over," Vasily Astrov, an economist at the Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, told the Journal. ....
As the Kremlin continues pumping money into its fragile but booming economy, an expert told Insider Putin's grip on the financial levers of the country also serves to prevent civil unrest that could lead to his ouster.
Insider previously reported Putin has boosted his country's production of military equipment and subsidized mortgages to keep the economy stable during the first year and a half of the war. In addition, the Russian state has responded to the inflated value of the ruble by raising pensions, salaries, and other benefits for people who are not well-off. At the same time, household consumption, real estate, and business activity have fallen in Russia since the invasion of Ukraine began.
Putin said Thursday the country will continue to increase its production of military equipment "not by some percent, but by several times," indicating the Russian president is settling in for a long war, The Wall Street Journal reported, which some warn will have dire future effects.
"The longer the war lasts, the more addicted the economy will become to military spending, raising the risk of stagnation or even outright crisis once the conflict is over," Vasily Astrov, an economist at the Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, told the Journal. ....