Russian currency stabilizing

Those sanctions really hurt Russia huh? Western media would have you think they were getting crippled by them but quietly Germany and the UK still buy their oil and gas 😂

Putins approval rating the highest its ever been according to western sources its 83%. Putin is now saying if you want to buy Russian oil you must use Russian currency. That swift financial ban really was a good move eh?

The media wants to sell you that Putin is just a mad man that has gone rouge and hasnt planned any of this out. The opposite is starting to look to be the case.

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Comments ( 22 )
  • donteatstuffoffthesidewalk

    so they polled putins mother AND father for approval numbers?

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    • I dont know why its so hard to believe he has support in Russia. Dont put too much faith in your countries media. The poll was done by a respected source even according to the biased western sources.

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      • MonteMetcalfe

        So who is this respected source?
        And one has to wonder if those polled know the truth of what is going on or just the BS fed to them from Putin.

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        • Boojum

          My understanding is that the poll was conducted by telephone.

          Given the current climate in Russia and the country's long history of surveilling the public and violently suppressing dissent, even a total fool has to understand that the typical Russian will respond in a positive way if they answer the phone and some stranger asks if they approve of Putin.

          That poll is a complete joke. Putin, the gang of corrupt thugs running the country and Putin's pathetic fan bois no doubt want to believe it's accurate, but that's unlikely.

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          • MonteMetcalfe

            Lol, I think you nailed it.
            I'm sure any recent poll of North Koreans would reflect a similar amount of satisfaction with Dear Leader.

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          • No this is a different poll. The telephone poll was a week ago. This new poll Im almost positive was done door to door in urban and rural environments. The Levada center (the pollers) formerly did telephone polls since 2020 because of covid but I'm almost certain as of september 23 2021 theyre back to going door to door. Unless they have recently gone back to telephone polling. They polled 1,632 people from ages 18 and up. According to the mainstream media is the only reputable polling organization in Russia.
            And Russia considers it a "foreign agent" because they believe it tends to even have a western biased. This is not known to be a Russian friendly polling organization.

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            • Boojum

              I happened to come across a mention of that Levada poll yesterday, and you're right - it was a door to door survey. But that doesn't sway me from my previous doubts about how accurately any poll will reflect what Russians are _really_ thinking.

              Maybe I'm wrong and most Russians are actually ignorant, brainwashed drones who never question state propaganda, but I start from the assumptions that many Russians are bright enough to understand that the only useful thing about state-controlled TV, censored websites, and state-controlled print media is that it tells them what they're expected to believe. I also assume that most Russians are smart enough to comprehend the possible negative consequences of voicing an opinion contrary to that official line.

              This means that, whether the polling is done by telephone or door to door visits, sensible Russians will be very leery about saying what they really think when that's in conflict with what they're supposed to think.

              But, hell, what do I know? I don't speak Russian, I've spent no time in the country and I know no Russians personally. So it's possible I'm being incredibly naïve and the vast majority of Russians are actually cretinous goons with a pathological persecution complex, and most of them would cheer if they saw the death and devastation their invading army is causing in Ukraine. Maybe the majority of Russians recognise a kindred spirit in their thug of a president, so they're thrilled by his strongman act, and they love how their relatives and friends are being maimed and slaughtered in a needless war.

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  • olderdude-xx

    You do understand that if Putin follows through on his promise of requiring rubles for the existing contracts - or else he shuts off the gas and oil... then Russia will have violated the existing contracts (The existing contracts specify dollars or euros as the currency of payment).

    The reason that many of the various countries are still buying gas and oil has to do with existing contracts. Same with the companies that provide services to the Russian gas and Oil industry. Few countries are signing new contracts; but all countries are honoring the contracts already in place.

    The international business climate and the international courts take international trade contracts very seriously.

    If Putin follows through - it would destroy any credibility in the business world that contracts with Russia means anything, and set Russia's international trade with the world back about 3 decades, or more. Cash and carry only will be the norm (and most countries want to be paid in dollars or euros).

    Also, while the Russian population may have a high approval rating based on the false information that they are being fed... that will likely change when all the bodies and wounded start coming back from the war.

    As for the economy. You are correct that at this time it has not been affected much.

    That will get worse as time goes on - and in 3-6 months the Russian people will know that they are in real economic trouble.

    I suggest that you let us know how things look in 6 months. At this point its a bit premature...

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    • Boojum

      I think Putin completely destroyed Russia's credibility in the business world a couple of weeks ago when he appropriated the 500-odd planes in Russia which were leased from Western companies.

      After that stunt, a company would have to be completely idiotic (or utterly corrupted by Russian bribes) to ever supply anything to Russia without first getting payment in cash.

      What's more, Western insurance companies would be extremely stupid to provide coverage for loss to any airline on routes which land in Russian territory. And, of course, airlines would be extremely stupid to fly a plane without insurance coverage.

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      • olderdude-xx

        I was aware of the leased aircraft issue. I follow and participate in an aviation forum.

        Most of the Russian airline companies tried their best to work something out with the leasing companies (including using 3rd parties) - but were over-ruled by Putin on those attempts. The Russian airlines know how bad of a situation they are in long term.

        The big difference is that Russia's economy depends on being able to sell gas and oil. They can survive without much civlian aviation. They cannot survice without gas and oil sales.

        Up to this point the Russian companies have been honoring their contracts (even if it's just barely) and the international companies have been honoring there contracts as well.

        For Putin to mess with the gas and oil contracts... will be to alienate the very group of buyers and equipment and service suppliers that his countries economy depends on.

        It's a completely different world and level of risk than the Aviation contracts.

        At least Putin will reap what he sows...

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  • Boojum

    This sounds very similar to how all the pro-Brexit nuts in Britain said, "You see? It's been a month/year/two years since we voted to leave the EU, and the sky hasn't fallen! Everything's going to be just fine!"

    Meanwhile, inflation was creeping up and GDP was slipping down. British companies were shifting jobs abroad, their exports to the EU were slumping, and they were having to deal with the additional costs and delays in goods crossing borders. Foreign companies were shifting their plans for future investment from Britain to EU countries. Farmers, elderly care homes and the National Health Service were suffering labour shortages because people from the EU no longer wanted to work in Britain.

    Brexit hasn't (so far) been an utter disaster for the UK and it hasn't turned the country into an economic wasteland, but it's clear that it has had a negative impact in many ways and very few benefits.

    And Brexit has been a slow-motion change which is much less drastic and wide-reaching than the sanctions on Russia - an economy which is about half the size of the UK's in terms of GDP, and one which was in much poorer general health prior to sanctions than Britain's was prior to Brexit.

    You can keep on thinking that everything is going to be fine if you choose to do so, but in order to do that, you're going to have to wilfully ignore just how dependent Russia has become on foreign imports.

    To take just a few examples:

    You need to pretend that the aircraft that Putin has stolen from Western leasing companies will be able to continue to fly safely even though they no longer have access to the spare parts they need for maintenance and repairs.

    You need to pretend that car factories in Russia haven't already shut down due to lack of components. (Hell, even Lada has had to suspend production due to that problem.)

    You need to pretend that Uralvagonzavod isn't experiencing serious problems with building and repairing tanks and armoured vehicles due to a lack of parts, that the technology in Russian observation drones doesn't come from Western sources, and that some Russian missiles don't rely on electronics sourced from the USA.

    And you'll need to work extra hard to keep on pretending that the increased prices in Russian shops are just fake news.

    I'm sure that if the sanctions stay in place, Russia will be able to adapt. During the 70-odd years the USSR existed, it was clear that the serf mentality is a fundamental part of the Russian psyche. The vast majority of Russian people accepted their shitty lives during that period, so the vast majority of Russians alive today will deal with this developing mess like the pathetically servile peasants they are at heart. Those Russians with transferable skills and education are fleeing the country if they possibly can, but who cares about them. As long as they have potatoes and borscht and vodka, the typical Russian is content with their lot.

    Russia is pretty much self-sufficient in basic foodstuffs, so you won't starve. I'm sure China will be happy to supply as much of the crappy stuff they produce as you want in exchange for oil and other raw materials that Russia produces. Russian drivers have a real talent for keeping junkyards stocked with fresh wrecks, so you'll be able to keep on cannibalising those mangled hulks to repair your modern cars for years. And when that resource dries up and Russian roads start to look like a 21st Century version of Cuba, Lada can dust off their Soviet-era tooling and you can save up for years to buy a new VAZ-2101.

    Like olderdude, I'd like you to come back in six months and let us know how wonderful things still are in Russia.

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  • Whatintarnation

    So you're rootin for Putin then? I don't care for any politician and the media sucks butt. But I can bet that over time the sanctions will start to take their toll. Beats WW3 to me.

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    • Its unlikely the sanctions will have a major effect because the worst sanctions have been bypassed (like the swift ban, and oil bans). Not only have the sanctions not worked but they will hurt western europe more than Russia. And now with the rise of China theres a new global superpower economy so Russia not dealing with the west isnt as vital anymore because Russia can get everything and more from China. China is not taking sides. USA can not control everyone anymore since the rise of China. And this in a way is good because atleast our woke bullshit will not spread globally.

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      • dude_Jones

        Sorry to say, comrade, but it won’t work out as you are predicting. China’s economy is ten times (10X) larger than yours. You have absolutely nothing that they want, and you will get nothing in return. In China, production and technology run with millisecond precision.

        China has a secret agenda. They are hoping to cut the solidarity and strong loyalty between Western Europe and North America. They will encourage Russia to fail so that they can find most effective tactics to take Taiwan.

        China is good at “ploys” disguised as diplomacy. You have just been warned from a western source that would know.

        это не говорит дальше

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        • China wants to destabilize the US led international order. China believes that the US is abusing its position as the dominant economic power. China also wants Taiwan and can use Russia and India as leverage against the US.

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          • dude_Jones

            Well first, the US isn’t the leader. Western Europe calls the shots. The US just supplies top quality military hardware.

            Secondly, neither Russia nor India can supply anything for leverage. China knows it must break Western Europe’s loyalty to North America.

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            • Russia and India are military super powers. If they want Taiwan they could use their support.

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  • litelander8

    Biden is just trying to convince everyone they need to buy electric.

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    • Coal powered cars

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