Kathrine Frich
He is mirroring the doomed strategy of former Soviet leader.
History has a funny way of repeating itself when leaders ignore the past.
Running a giant nation requires keeping the economy moving and the lights on.
But sometimes wartime ambition swallows everything else, and the final cost can be absolute ruin.
Chasing the past
More than 1,600 days into the conflict in Ukraine, the Kremlin is doubling down on its military goals. According to Ziare western analysts believe Vladimir Putin is making a massive mistake.
He is mirroring the doomed strategy of former Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev. Decades ago, Brezhnev cranked up military spending to a point the empire simply could not sustain.
Now, Moscow plans to boost defense spending by 27 percent in 2027. According to The Telegraph, this will push the military budget to 183 billion euros. It will consume over 7 percent of the national economy.
That money has to come from somewhere. Russian citizens are footing the bill through steep tax hikes while watching funds for hospitals disappear.
Ignoring the warnings
Some regions in Russia have already slashed healthcare budgets by a third this year. Energy shortages hit several areas over the summer as Ukrainian strikes damaged key infrastructure.
Meanwhile, Western officials worry this cash grab points to a wider war. Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski recently warned the UN General Assembly about the threat.
He claimed Moscow was “preparing a big action this year.” And European intelligence chiefs believe Russia might test NATO defenses in “months, not years.”
The situation grew tense enough that CIA Director John Ratcliffe secretly flew to Moscow in late August. He delivered a blunt message directly to the Kremlin.
A doomed economy
Ratcliffe reportedly warned Putin about the severe risks of provoking the Western alliance. He also told Russian officials directly that “Russia is losing the war” in Ukraine.
A subsequent CIA report shared with Western allies painted a grim picture. The intelligence document stated that the Russian economy “will collapse, as happened in the Soviet Union at the end of the Cold War.”
Sanctions continue to choke oil and gas exports. The casualty count is equally staggering, with estimates hitting 1.5 million dead or injured Russian soldiers.
Putin might be trying to look strong for the incoming American administration. Yet by draining his country to fund an endless war, he is walking the exact path that destroyed the Soviet Union.
