Introduction
The economy is neither an isolated nor an independent area of human activity but an interrelated one with others such as politics. That is why professional economists must develop an understanding of how events outside the economy affect a country’s economic climate. This paper aims to review three news articles and explain how they relate to Russia’s various current economic indicators discussed in previous works.
Navalny’s Poisoning, Ruble’s Exchange Rate, Russia’s Exports, and Economic Growth
One of the more recent news articles selected for this research is Alexei Navalny: the US sanctions Russian officials over the nerve-agent attack by The Associated Press. The authors describe the sanctions imposed by the Biden administration against supporters and friends of Vladimir Putin in response to the poisoning and imprisonment of Alexei Navalny (Associated Press, 2021). The Associated Press also mentions similar European Union (US) sanctions and cites expert opinions. They note that the measures taken are too lenient and will not change President Putin’s political course (Associated Press, 2021).
The bottom line is that the previous sanctions had a significant negative impact on the ruble’s exchange rate, which caused it to decline. Moreover, the individuals against whom sanctions were imposed are not only political figures but also major Russian businesspeople. Therefore, new sanctions could close some export channels and trade opportunities for the Russian Federation. Both of these factors could slow down Russia’s economic growth.
United States (US) Foreign Policy and Russia and China Trading Partnership
Another article is Sen. Deb Fischer: Russia, China nuclear threats – US must do this to face range of modern challenges by Sen. Deb Fischer. She describes “the New START nuclear arms control treaty between the United States and Russia” (Fischer, 2021, para. 1). The writer also analyzes the nuclear weapons policy of the two nations and China (Fischer, 2021). The article is essential for understanding why China has replaced Germany as the leading trading partner of RF over the past decade. Both countries are geopolitical competitors to the US (Fischer, 2021). Slowly mounting tensions between the three countries have forced Russia and China to develop and strengthen diplomatic and economic ties to effectively counter the US and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. The extension of the anti-nuclear weapons agreement will probably improve the US and RF dialogue, but it will not end the geopolitical confrontation. One should expect further development of the Chinese-Russian trade partnership.
Sputnik V and Russia Foreign Trade
The last article is related to the COVID-19 international crisis. It is Russia showing off the new Covid-19 vaccine factory even as its people hesitate to get the shot by Zahra Ullah and Matthew Chance. Sputnik V production’s nuances are described there, as well as the skepticism of the Russian population towards the vaccine and the healthcare system (Ullah & Chance, 2021). From an economic perspective, Sputnik V is an excellent opportunity for Russia to develop new trade relations with other developing countries. According to Ullah and Chance (2021), “the vaccine has become one of the world’s most preordered, with at least 30 countries, from Argentina to the Philippines, signing contracts for nearly 2.5 billion doses so far…” (para. 10). It can be said that the vaccine could even become the thing that would soften the relationship between the Western countries and Russia.
Conclusion
This paper reviews three news articles and analyzes how the events described in them affect the RF economy. These events are the poisoning and the subsequent imprisonment of Alexei Navalny, the extension of Russia and the US anti-nuclear weapons treaty, and the mass production of Sputnik V. They are associated with such elements and indicators of the Russian economy as the Ruble exchange rate, exports, economic growth, and foreign trade.
References
Associated Press. (2021). Alexei Navalny: US sanctions Russian officials over nerve-agent attack. Euronews. Web.
Fischer, D. (2021). Sen. Deb Fischer: Russia, China nuclear threats – US must do this to face range of modern challenges. Fox News. Web.
Ullah, Z., & Chance, M. (2021). Russia shows off new Covid-19 vaccine factory even as its people hesitate to get the shot. CNN. Web.