Publications
51 publications
Russian economy
on the brink of recession
Even the windfall from the Iran war is not enough to save it
Putin's Fatal Blow to Russia's Demographics
Latest Data
Russian Economy's “Unholy Trinity”
Recession, Inflation, Budgetary Crisis
A Vision of the Future Against Fatigue and Resentment
To overcome the hardships of war and emigration, Russians in exile need to adopt a global mindset
Why the 28-Point “Plan” on Ukraine Can’t be Considered Serious
1. The “plan” doesn’t reflect the actual situation on the battlefield The plan forces Ukraine to make many concessions, while at the same time providing wide-ranging benefits for Russia (including complete absolution of material and legal responsibility for the aggression), in return for zero…
Russia’s Budget Crisis, Explained
And what it means for the war in Ukraine
Crises multiplying behind Putin-China photo-op facade
When the rhetoric of an “unlimited alliance” faces economic reality
What’s Happening to the Russian Economy?
A perfect storm: budget crisis, looming recession, inflation There are no miracles, and Putin’s much-hailed “economic resilience” since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine was largely explained by three simple factors: There are no miracles, and Putin’s much-hailed “economic resilience” since…
The evolution of the US–Russia sanctions regime
Structure, composition and ways to improve effectiveness
Record deficits, inflation, recession fears—a moment of reckoning?
Russian Economy and Sanctions Brief—May 2025
Russian Economy and Sanctions Brief—March 2025
Russia's stock market rally at the start of Trump's presidency fueled by hopes for at least partial relief from sanctions have hit hard reality. Russia is now again…
The U.S. Political Factor in Russia’s Economic Future
Economy and Sanctions Brief — February 2025
The Russian Economy and Sanctions Brief—January 2025
More Uncertainty Follows as the Central Bank Yields to Pressure
Russian Economy and Sanctions Brief—November 2024
Between inflation and stagflation, lobbyists versus bankers, and the need for sanctions control
The Russian Economy and Sanctions Brief—October 2024
Inflation, budget and labor shortages, and a cooling of relations with China
The Russian Economy and Sanctions Brief—August 2024
Vladimir Putin’s corridor of economic opportunities is narrowing
Putin’s War Economy
Czar Broadcasts Panic
In Their Own Words: Russian Officials Openly Describe the Dire State of the Russian Economy
It is widely assumed by Western media and experts that Vladimir Putin is strong, self-assured, and possesses the resources for an everlasting warfare against Ukraine and the "collective West." More often than not they would claim that "Russia’s economy is thriving and weathering…
Belousov’s Appointment Exposes a Structural Crisis in Putin’s MOD
Putin’s difficulties are plenty and mounting
The Transition Project: Post-Soviet Experience and Russia’s Recent Track Record
We see that Russia has slid towards authoritarianism. Does this mean that the democratic experiment of the 1990s was an absolute failure?
The Transition Project: Decentralization of the Economy
Economic reforms and decentralization in Russia
Putin’s cabinet reshuffle hints to his panic over strategic limbo
Vladimir Putin has yet again raised eyebrows by seriously reshuffling the government military and security leadership
Vladimir Putin’s interview to Tucker Carlson. Not as harmless as it may seem at first glance
Debunking Putin’s lies about his war against Ukraine is essential to win the hearts and minds of the voters in the U.S. and beyond
Why Russia’s Presidential elections don’t matter, and why they still do
Do these elections still matter? What’s the best plan of action for the Russian prodemocracy forces for these elections?
Source of Optimism for 2024: Putin’s Vulnerabilities are Plenty and Growing
Putin has a lot of weaknesses, and they are getting more and more numerous
Current trends in Russian public opinion toward the war
What are the trends in Russian public opinion regarding the war and support for the Putin regime?
A Bad Summer for Putin
Russian dictator threatened by multiple crises, with more to come
Public Opinion in Russia and War in Ukraine: End of the Year Recap
No one in Russia wants a long-term war, and the mobilization for the war is unpopular
A Case for Supporting Free Democratic Russia
The paper argues that Russia’s democratization is based on genuine bottom-up public demand for democracy
There’s no money, but you keep on fighting
Vladimir Milov on how Putin is running out of money for war effort
Yandex is the Kremlin’s Weapon Against Democracy
Its close cooperation with the Russian authorities and security services
Russian Society is in the Midst of a Profound Transformation not Captured by Traditional Opinion Polls
Between March-April 2022, the trust in television as a source of information fell thirty percent
Public opinion is turning on Putin’s war in Ukraine
Putin’s support hinged on his “operation” ending quickly and successfully
Saying “Nothing Will Ever Change in Russia” is not Only Unhelpful, It is Wrong
Putin’s attack on Ukraine and a noticeable increase in aggressive imperialist sentiments in Russian society have prompted another round of deliberations on the perpetual topic that “nothing will ever change in Russia." People argue that it is “useless” to expect Russia…
What is the Russian public opinion regarding Putin’s war against Ukraine?
Beyond the difficulties of polling under a totalitarian regime at war, the surveys’ methodology itself reveals key nuances
2021 in review: Is there any reason for optimism?
It is hard to summarize dispassionately the results of the outgoing year 2021—it turned out to be just too turbulent. And this turbulence did not let up for even a second, even in the days running up to New Year’s Eve
Russia post-elections
As the dust settles after the September elections into the State Duma, several important factors define the outlook for 2024, when Putin will likely seek to extend his Presidential tenure for another term—and, if in case of success, stay in power indefinitely
Beyond archaic: Putin’s obsolete “strategy” of national insecurity for Russia
On July 2nd, Putin signed an updated version of the "National Security Strategy of the Russian Federation." However, updated is only a technical term, merely characterizing the fact that the strategy is formally revised every six years (with the previous document adopted in 2015). By any other merit, the “strategy” is nothing less than completely outdated and offers a glimpse of a weird salad of conspiracies, prejudices and medieval worldviews that thrive in the minds of the Kremlin rulers.
The West Must Not Sacrifice Human Rights for ‘Strategic Interests’ in its Relationship with Russia
It is a popular misconception that human rights and foreign policy do not coexist. As has been proven time and again by Vladimir Putin’s Russia, such a vision…
Putin is Panicking
Vladimir Milov explains why Russian president started constitutional reforms well before 2024 elections. On Wednesday, Vladimir Putin did a rather unusual thing. Three years before the formal end…
Russian Youth: A Look Inside the “Black Box”
The 2017 protests across Russia surprised many observers both inside and outside the country—no one quite expected to see so many young people, including high school students, taking to the streets to express dissatisfaction with the current political leadership.
The Case of Baring Vostok: foreign investment is not safe in Putin’s Russia
The February 15, 2019 arrests of Baring Vostok Capital top managers on fraud charges sent shock waves through the ever-shrinking community of those still investing in Russia. The…
A piggy bank of $6 trillion for Putin’s cronies to “salt the stash away”
Tomorrow, on October 24th, the State Duma will be considering a proposed draft of the federal budget for the years of 2019-2021 in its first reading. One cannot…
Russian pension reform: a “black swan” for Vladimir Putin?
Russian pension reform aimed at sharply raising the retirement age has all the chances to become a long-anticipated political “black swan” for Vladimir Putin's government—a mistake…
The Current Russian Government Will Become a Textbook Example of Administrative Stagnation
Dmitry Medvedev’s new Administration has already been dubbed “the stagnation cabinet” and for a good reason. Despite some rotations, the new government is dominated by well-known bureaucrats who…
The new old sanctions: why the U.S. Senate’s decision is so dangerous for Russia
Keeping U.S. financial sanctions enforced for an indefinite period could slow down Russia's efforts to rebuild its economy. The legislation draft aimed against Russia and endorsed by the…
Stop funding RT: Better ways to spend the budget money
State Duma, the Russian Parliament have just adopted Russian federal budget for 2017. No cuts for funding propaganda was made, of course. If you are interested how “Russia…
Is the leader of the United Russia Party afraid of being elected in Russia?
We are witnessing a juicy sequel of the story with Untied Russia altering a voting district to get the number of votes that would otherwise be insufficient to…
From Disapproval to Change
Free Russia Foundation and the Wilfried Martens Centre for European Studies are happy to present our joint report on the sanctions and economic crisis impact on Russian population…
Democratic Coalition: what next?
After a total wipe-out of Democratic Coalition candidates in this year's Russian regional elections, questions arise as to the further political strategy of Russian Democrats confronting Vladimir Putin's…
Is Putin really that popular and what is next after Nemtsov’s murder?
One of the biggest questions following the horrible murder of Russian opposition leader Boris Nemtsov goes to the impact it will have on the Russian opposition. Will the…