Comments by "Geoff Lepper" (@geofflepper3207) on "How does Russia's military spending compare to Europe?" video.

  1. A few comments: Russian military spending based on PPP is likely exaggerated for two reasons. One is that Russia is known for having vast amounts of corruption. How much of that military spending went straight into the pockets of wealthy Russians to be spent on luxury items instead of being spent on actual military equipment? A second reason to question Russian figures based on purchasing power is that Russian officials are likely greatly underestimating the Russian inflation rate and thus are underestimating the Russian cost of living and thus are exaggerating how much military equipment can be bought with a given number of rubles (or dollars). The Russians claim that the Russian inflation rate is about 8% but one American economist said that the true Russian inflation rate is almost certainly higher than the Russian base interest rate of 21%. His argument is that if Russia's inflation rate was really 8% then people in Russia wouldn't bother investing in any businesses because they could instead just buy Russian bonds or put their money in a savings account at a high interest rate and make a huge real return with no risk at all. Since that's not what all Russians are doing it's obvious that making a return of 21% or so in interest is not any higher than the true Russian inflation rate. Russian citizens don't believe that getting 21% in interest is giving them a huge real return above inflation because they don't believe that the real Russian inflation rate is just 8%. If the true Russian inflation rate is over 21% then the truth is that a ruble or a dollar can't buy as much military equipment in Russia as the Russians claim because the cost of things in Russia is higher than the Russian government claims. However, Europe does need to increase military spending now. Waiting until Russian tanks roll into a NATO country will be too late. Also, it's really important that Europe ensures that Ukraine survives and eventually joins NATO because Ukraine has a large, very capable military and because unlike Europeans and Americans and Canadians the Ukrainians know how to produce vast numbers of very effective air and sea drones for a small per unit cost and they know how to use them effectively and efficiently. And in general the Ukrainians know how to fight against Russian forces. If Ukraine survives then Europe survives. If Ukraine does not survive then Europe may not survive. Every European should know that and understand that and think about that. As Zelensky said Europeans have a choice between ruled by leaders in Brussels or ruled by leaders in Moscow. They better make the right choice.
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