JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia has its troops. But does it have the economy to supply them?” – Christian Science Monitor/ Fred Weir
“When Russia called up 300,000 reservists to fill out the army’s ranks for the ongoing Ukraine war … bureaucratic chaos and public angst … erupted as men were dragged from their civilian lives into unexpected military service …. But there is a parallel, economic mobilization … still going on, to rapidly reallocate resources and labor from the civilian sector to war production. … largely shrouded in secrecy and controversy. … The baneful effects of war on public speech and freedoms in Russia have been well recorded. Analysts say … the impact of subordinating Russia’s fledgling market economy to state orders and military priorities is yet to be felt, but it is not likely to be healthy for the country’s long-term economic development. …”