Comments by "MarcosElMalo2" (@MarcosElMalo2) on "How Putin's web of corrupt allies became Ukraine's 'secret weapon' | Mark Galeotti" video.

  1.  @johnnyenglish583  I think there are two main ways to look at Russia’s economic stability. Short term war sustainment and long term health. And the catch for Russia is the longer it can sustain the war, the worse will be its long term prospects. The only reason a country switches to a war time economy is to outlast the adversary. In this case, they have to outlast Ukraine. As long as the west can supply Ukraine and as long as Ukraine is willing to fight, Russia won’t outlast them. And the west is nowhere near having to switch to a war time economy. A strategic build up of a country’s DIB is not a wartime economy. It’s actually an economy booster for a period.
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  2. Oooh! Interesting thought!
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  3. Agreed, Kadyrov might be close to being physically done. But that is far from saying Chechnya will be neutralized as an ally. However, when he goes, Chechnya becomes a greater distraction and possibly a greater drain. For the time being, lump Putin, Shoigu, and Gerasimov together as “The Regime”. And the biggest and daily fear of an authoritarian regime is losing power and being replaced.
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  4. So it’s possible they were on the payroll but didn’t act at the start of hostilities in February 2022. My understanding was a lot of these corrupted “agents” were surprised by the invasion. Actually carrying out the plots was not on their minds. Just the same, they’re corrupted. It’s better to be safe than sorry.
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