The ruble has been falling as Russia’s war on Ukraine drags on with no sign that Moscow intends to pull back. While there are underlying causes such as shrinking net exports, some experts also see a ‘crisis of confidence’ in the currency and its plunge has set off a tug-of-war over economic policy.
For more than a year now, Russia's economy has been pummeled by a series of Western sanctions aimed at punishing Moscow for its invasion of Ukraine.
The International Monetary Fund kicked up a tempest when it forecast Russia’s sanctions-pummeled economy would grow this year. Some experts accused the lender of whitewashing dodgy statistics; others say the forecast is plausible.
Experts from the United Nations' nuclear watchdog on November 1 were inspecting two sites where Russia has made unfounded claims that Ukraine is manufacturing “dirty bombs.”