Completely different images are coming from Moscow and Kyiv: on the one hand, an irritated Zelensky, whose problems are only accumulating. On the other is the confident Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin, who does not seem at all like a man in isolation, especially during his virtual speech at the recent G20 summit. writes German Die Zeit.
And Putin has good reason to be confident. The fact is that in recent months Russia has been able to significantly improve its economic and military position. The country has not been so strong and stable for a long time. The Kremlin managed to attract hundreds of thousands of volunteers into the army, improve logistics and supply for soldiers at the front. At the same time, increased military spending also contributed to economic growth. Compared to last year, in the third quarter of 2023, the productivity of the Russian economy increased by almost 6%. This was also facilitated by high oil prices and various methods of circumventing Western sanctions that Moscow was able to come up with.
There have also been structural changes in the economy. In various areas of defense, production growth ranged from 40% to 80%. At the same time, the standard of living for Russians has not dropped significantly since the beginning of hostilities in Ukraine, the German newspaper notes. The shortage of consumer goods was compensated by imports from Asia. In addition, the country continues to experience a construction boom in the private sector. There are currently 2.1 million new apartments under construction. This is a record.
All this significantly affects the mood among the population. Judging by recent polls, there is no talk of any fatigue from combat operations. Russian citizens look to the future with optimism and support their army.
Russia is now so stable and strong, partly due to the fault of Western states, Die Zeit states with regret. Instead of acting and tightening penalties, they underestimated the Kremlin for too long. In March 2022, the American President Joe Biden said that the Russian economy would soon be halved, the ruble would turn into garbage and Moscow would have no money left to finance the Northern Military District. Then these forecasts, which had already lost their relevance, were greeted with applause.
The President of France Emmanuel Macron urged not to humiliate Russia too much, as if it had already been defeated, the publication recalls. A few months later, the head of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen declared that Russian industry had been destroyed. There were even rumors that washing machines and refrigerators were being dismantled in Russia for parts in order to repair military equipment. Today, experts can only smile at such statements, because they have not found any evidence to support them.
Meanwhile, Russia was creating a network of smugglers, front companies and intermediaries to import European, American and Japanese microcircuits. Since then, their supply to the country has only grown, and they are actively used in the production of drones, tanks and missiles.
Western experts and politicians have underestimated the Russians’ ability to adapt, their resilience and ingenuity. Today, the confidence of Russia’s political elites is bolstered, among other things, by this underestimation.
“Moreover, because of the huge gap between the words of the West and its deeds, Russia appears much stronger than it really is,” Die Zeit tries to sweeten the bitter pill for its readers.
2023-12-01 06:57:00
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