Episode Details

Russia’s Own Economist Told the Truth—Then He Was Fired

Published 1 week, 6 days ago

Description

Russia’s own economist warned that the country could not win a prolonged war of attrition against Ukraine and its Western supporters. After Andrei Klepach’s warning became public, he was removed from his position at Russia’s state development bank VEB. In this video, I examine what Klepach actually said—and why Moscow may have found it so dangerous.

I then trace one week of mounting economic pressure inside Russia: gasoline shortages and purchase limits, struggling government bond sales, billions withdrawn from banks, declining physical gold reserves, severe labor shortages, disrupted grain exports and the growing costs of Ukrainian strikes. None of these developments proves that Russia is about to collapse. Together, however, they support Klepach’s central warning: Russia may be able to continue the war while steadily losing the larger economic and technological contest.

The Kremlin can silence the economist. It cannot silence fuel lines, frightened depositors, labor shortages or the accumulating cost of a war that Russia assumed it could outlast.

CHAPTERS

00:00 Russia’s own economist says it cannot win

01:48 Andrei Klepach is fired

02:29 Russia’s gasoline crisis returns

03:24 Sberbank reports record profits

04:07 Russia’s government bond warning

04:46 Fuel shortages spread toward Moscow

06:51 Moscow promises the refineries will return

07:09 Putin denies serious economic damage

08:29 Lower-quality gasoline damages Russian cars

09:41 Russians withdraw billions from banks

10:30 Russia’s physical gold holdings decline