"We" don't need anything from Russia.
But a lot of European nations do. A lot of other nations who might have found themselves underserved by the West found a business partner in Russia. It's a big, rich country, so we can't exactly pretend it just doesn't exist.
Like other wars, this one will pass.
Big yes.
Rich?? Nope, don't think so.
Russia's economy is slightly smaller than New Jersey's, last I heard.
And shrinking fast: "Without question. Russia's GDP is projected to shrink by double digits this year. And this year alone,
the economic shock that's being projected will wipe out the past 15 years of economic gains in Russia. I mean, Russia is descending into economic and financial isolation." Daleep Singh, White House Deputy National Security Adviser for International Economics. Think about that. How were you doing, personally, 15 years ago, in 2007?
Sperbank, which holds one
third of all the assets of Russia is now frozen out of the world market. Imagine if Chase, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and Citibank were frozen. That's the level of pain being inflicted on Russia.
Now, the Ruble has bounced back, but that is because of artificial supports in Russia. That
can't last. Further, the sanctions have created a hole for "sovereign debt" to be paid from outside assets (Russia holds/held $640 billion in assets in the US and Europe), which was allowed to protect third parties from Russian default. Again, that fund is being depleted rapidly.
JPMorgan estimates that international investors own 22 percent of Russian companies’ foreign currency debt. That's a chunk, and will depress some investment assets, but it is far from risking widespread default - especially since exposure to Russian assets has plummeted since the 2014 round of sanctions. The risks were deemed too high by most investors.
It will take time, but Russia's economy is headed for a total collapse, along the lines of the
Hyperinflation in the Weimar Republic in the 1920s.
