Sure would be nice if they had a source, otherwise, this is just bs.
How is it cratering? Sure, exchange rates are showing ups and downs over the past year, but it’s not much more than a 10 USD spread.
https://www.google.com/finance/quote/USD-RUB?window=YTD
At the beginning of August, you could get 84 rubles for $1, today you can get 91 rubles for $1. It’s certainly not “cratering” per that hyperbolic headline, but it’s not an insignificant change, especially since the exchange rate had otherwise been on a downward trend since April.
How much would it be worth if not for Russian central bank intervention?
Putin is good at this. They better watch out for windows.
Perhaps the “correct” way to view the collapse of Russia is like the Ottoman empire. The ottomans fell apart in stages over 300 years, gradually losing direct control and influence over the hinterlands, then suddenly in quick, sharp wars against their former vassals in Africa and the Balkans. Eventually, they end up with a relatively small rump state in Turkey. I think that’s possibly the most likely outcome with Moscow/St. Petersburg retaining a much reduced ethnic russian rump state and nearly everything else breaking away. But - the point is - it happens slowly, in stages, and in response to losing wars. Longer than single human lifetimes, so it makes it harder to recognize and comprehend until it’s all over.
Anyone’s days are numbred.
