The predictions were: “Russia will be in Kyiv in hours”, “Putin will replace Ukrainian President with puppet”,  “Russia’s Air Force will crush Ukraine”, “Attacked on 4 sides Ukraine will surrender”.  To that Zelenskyy and the Ukrainians said  NYET! With just 78 planes in the air and Tanks running out of fuel the Russian attack appears uncoordinated and without passion. There are even rumors of Russian Units laying down their guns. In part here is why. Think about Brazil attacking Spain.

https://www.businessinsider.com/russian-economy-basically-big-gas-station-harvard-economist-2022-2

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Russia’s economy is “incredibly unimportant in the global economy except for oil and gas,” Jason Furman, a Harvard economist and former advisor to President Barack Obama, told The New York Times.

“It’s basically a big gas station,” he said.

His comments come as the West prepares heavy sanctions on Russia if it invades Ukraine. While they have the potential to throw the Russian economy into chaos, these measures could also reverberate to further damage the US, Europe, and the rest of the world as they battle inflation and rising energy prices — a ripple effect that the West hopes to mitigate.

On Monday, Moscow declared the independence of two breakaway regions of Ukraine and sent troops there — escalating the prospect of a major war. President Joe Biden has already ordered sanctions on the separatist regions — Donetsk and Luhansk — prohibiting US citizens from engaging in any exports, imports, or new investments in these areas.

Despite Russia’s size and wealth in raw materials, its economy is more on par with Brazil than with nations like Germany, France, and the UK, according to the latest nominal GDP data from the World Bank. According to the World Bank, Russia’s economy is smaller than Italy’s and South Korea’s, two nations with less than half of Russia’s population.

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Go there and read. More next week when gas prices will be above $4.

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