Bloomberg (October 15)
Vladimir Putin is losing “his best friend: expensive oil.” Petro revenue makes up 70% of Russia’s export revenue and “oil has been the key to Putin’s grip on power since he took over from Boris Yeltsin in 2000, fueling a booming economy that grew 7 percent on average from 2000 to 2008.” To balance its budget, Russia needs a per barrel price of over $100. “At $90, close to the current level, Russia will have a shortfall of 1.2 percent of gross domestic product.”
Forbes (September 29)
Vladimir Putin might “move against the Baltic states of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia” in an attempt to further weaken NATO. “Given the West’s responses to Russia’s invasions of Georgia and Ukraine, Putin may well be tempted to make a series of probes, after slicing and dicing Ukraine. He won’t send in troops and armor, as he’s done in Ukraine, but he’ll see what unrest he can create to start ‘softening up’ the Balts to become political vassals of Moscow.”
Tags: Baltic, Estonia, Georgia, Latvia, Lithuania, Moscow, Nato, Putin, Russia, Troops, Ukraine, Unrest
Los Angeles Times (September 11)
“The gravest immediate threat to the West’s long-term security does not emanate from Vladimir Putin or from the militants of the Islamic State. Rather, surprisingly, it comes from peace-loving Scots.” On September 18, we will see if Scotland will “actually break away from Britain.”
Tags: Britain, Immediate threat, Islamic State, Putin, Scotland, Security, West
New York Times (September 2)
“More than anyone, President Vladimir Putin of Russia has set the agenda for NATO’s 65th summit meeting this week, which could well be the most consequential since the Cold War ended.” Ironically, his antics may serve to strengthen NATO. He “has forced on it a new and urgent purpose by effectively invading Ukraine and demonstrating his utter disregard for the international system.”
New York Times (August 27)
The talks between Ukraine President Poroshenko and Russia’s Putin produced little. “The problem is that Ukraine has little interest in a cease-fire now, and Russia is pretending that it is not in the fray. Ukraine is steadily gaining ground against the Russian-backed rebels, and knows they would use a pause in fighting to rearm and consolidate.”
Tags: Cease-fire, Poroshenko, Putin, Rearm, Rebels, Russia, Talks, Ukraine
The Economist (July 26)
“ONE trillion dollars. That may be the cost to Russian investors of Vladimir Putin’s rule…. The calculation stems from the fact that investors regard Russian assets with suspicion. As a result, Russian stocks trade on a huge discount to much of the rest of the world, with an average price-earnings ratio (p/e) of just 5.2. At present, the Russian market has a total value of $735 billion. If it traded on the same p/e as the average emerging market (12.5), it would be worth around $1.77 trillion.”
Tags: Assets, Cost, Discount, Emerging market, Investors, Market, P/E, Putin, Russia, Suspicion, Trillion
Wall Street Journal (July 23)
“Vladimir Putin’s war on Ukraine continues as usual.” Except for instilling outlandish hopes, the shoot-down of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 changed nothing. “The world’s media hang on any hint of conciliation from President Putin, as if he will suddenly turn into Vlad the Peacemaker. He won’t change until he concludes that the cost of his aggression is too high to sustain. So far the costs have been minuscule, and Mr. Putin is reacting with predictable contempt.”
Tags: Aggression, Costs, Flight 17, Malaysia Airlines, Media, Putin, Shoot-down, Ukraine, Vladimir Putin, War
Los Angeles Times (July 22)
“It’s neither pleasant nor polite to say it, but the crash of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 may have been the best thing to happen to President Obama’s policy on Ukraine in weeks.” The U.S. had taken the lead, but the crisis had been fading from the radar as Europe’s politicians tried to avoid sacrificing business interests with Russia. Now, however, “Putin has a problem he didn’t have a week ago: Europe’s politicians and public are watching.”
Tags: Business interests, Crash, Crisis, Europe, Flight 17, Malaysia Airlines, Obama, Putin, Russia, U.S., Ukraine
New York Times (July 22)
“The comments from European leaders have been clear and tough, but words will count for little unless European Union foreign ministers enforce more stringent sanctions against Russia…. After the downing of Flight 17 and the brutish handling of the victims, it is time for Europe to hold Mr. Putin to his words.”
Forbes (June 16)
Putin’s oil deal with China should hardly rate a footnote. It amounts to “an annual average of $13 billion.” And rather than being a groundbreaking strategic alliance, “the deal with China underscores Russia’s core weakness. Despite its immense resources and highly educated population… Russia has a shockingly small economy that is amazingly dependent on the export of oil, gas and a few other natural resources.”
Tags: China, Deal, Dependent, Economy, Export, Gas, Natural resources, Oil, Putin, Resources, Strategic alliance, Weakness
