Last month, the Russian government released a draft of the proposed 2026–2028 federal budget, which purports to show the near-term priorities of President Vladimir Putin.
Vladimir Milov, a Russian opposition politician who left Russia after Putin’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, has released a pessimistic assessment of the former KGB lieutenant colonel’s chances of being able to continue to bankroll his war in Ukraine.
In his latest report for the Foundation, he projects rough times ahead for Moscow due to a series of unfavorable trends.
According to his analysis, Russia’s budgetary situation is anything but “normal.”
Bull. They have been laundering oil through India for a while. And while that loophole may close, every other asian country is waiting in line to be the supplier of refined product to Europe using Russian oil. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/indian-refiners-review-russian-oil-contracts-after-us-sanctions-source-says-2025-10-23/
Also, I know a Russian immigrant who regularly travels back there to visit her family. She flies through turkey with a suitcase full of money and western goods without any problems. Money is flowing into Russian like a river.