It's not happening quickly, but little by little, the Russian economy is crumbling. Company after company is closing its doors or scaling down its operations. There's no more revenue, no parts, no demand for the products.

Equipment is breaking down and cannot be repaired. This is gradually eroding economic activity in Russia. Even in the arms industry!

Money is becoming scarce. The official exchange rate between the ruble and the dollar remains the same, but trade doesn't exist at that rate. Consumers are no longer buying expensive goods in stores, and businesses no longer trust each other. After all, your contract partner could go bankrupt tomorrow, so first pay, then receive service or goods, but the buyer has the same fear...

It also doesn't help that Ukraine is now attacking the energy supply deep in Russia's hinterland. All these losses are also for the economy when the power goes out for hours and becomes increasingly unstable. More and more gas stations are out of gasoline, gas, and diesel. With the power outages, electric driving isn't helping either.

Meanwhile, Putin is talking about an encirclement of Ukrainian troops, and that would require a ceasefire, so the press can see it. If you're really that strong, go get them now. After all, you've got those troops surrounded and in the weeds. What can they do?

Putin lives in a dream world. Just like Hitler in 1945, he's moving non-existent units.

That doesn't mean Russia is already defeated—far from it—but in Putin's mind, there's a different Russian army than the one actually present in Ukraine.

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