RussiaGate #Digest

2022-05-18 13:39:39 As we have pointed out many times, the main damage that February, 24 has imposed on Russia is technological.

It will be felt soon enough that in long term Kremlin is sabotaging сrucial economic sector of the country: oil and gas industry.

Sanctions restrict Russia's access to crucial Western technology needed to drill oil from drawn-down remote Siberian and Arctic fields.

Kommersant came up today with an article about the retreat of oil service majors (Schlumberger, Baker Hughes, Halliburton) from Russia.

Their complete withdrawal could bring Russian output down from 5 to 15% a year.

Russian discourse is keen about conspiracies like NWO - new world order. It is escalating to No Way Out. Open / Comment

2022-05-17 18:06:20 Another three top-managers of Sberbank are leaving the main Russian bank, including the Chief Financial Officer Alexandra Buriko.

Two others are the chief of Sberbank's retail block Sergei Maltsev and Deputy Chairman Natalia Alymova.

Senior VP of Sberbank Yulia Chupina, FIrst Deputy CEO Lev Khasis, CTO David Rafalovsky and another VP, Head of Global Markets Department Andrei Shemetov have left the bank earlier.

This exodus is explained by the sweeping sanctions on the top-managers of significant Russian banks like VTB and Gazprombank.

These people are used to a certain level of comfort and are not ready to give it up because of any "special operation". Open / Comment

2022-05-17 15:10:28 German Finance Minister Christian Lindner is open to the idea of seizing Russian state assets to finance the reconstruction of Ukraine.

At the same time he said seizing the private assets of Russian individuals or companies would be more complex because of legal considerations.

Russian state assets abroad are enormous. It could be an unprecedented move which would secure the pariah status of Russia for decades. Open / Comment

2022-05-16 17:50:17 Renault has handed its controlling stake in Russia’s largest carmaker over to the Russian government, which plans to use the manufacturer to re-launch the “Moskvitch” brand.

Renault retains the right to buy back all of its Russian assets within six years of the handover.

Hopefully it will buy them back earlier. In six years the tech business under Russian government will be 100% destroyed. Open / Comment

2022-05-16 17:35:15 CEO of Russian tech-giant Yandex (often referred to as "Russian Google") Arkady Volozh contacted Israeli PM Bennet and asked for his assistance in moving the headquarters of the company from Moscow to Tel-Aviv.

Yandex later denied these intentions. We think nobody believed them, and rightfully so. Yandex wants out of Russia, at least partially.

Russia has become a toxic territory for any hi-tech, so Yandex's move makes sense.

We think that the worst part of Western sanctions for Russia is their devastating effect of technologies. Open / Comment

2022-05-13 15:58:41 BBC has elaborated on how Kremlin's Deputy Chief of Staff Dmitry Kozak, who was responsible for Ukraine, has been practically stripped off his job.

Unlike Naryshkin, Kozak hasn't looked pathetic on the historic meeting of Security Council, but at that time emotional Putin has already made up his mind.

So, at the end of the day, ideas of Kozak who was directly working with Ukraine, hasn't been taken into consideration.

The loneliness of Putin is cosmic. Open / Comment

2022-05-13 13:15:44 Phone scammers who introduced themselves as bank employees have stolen 1.2mln rubles from Deputy Head of Federal Tax Service Svetlana Bondarchuk.

That's probably all you need to know about the quality of Russian "elites". Open / Comment

2022-05-12 11:30:45 Siemens will quit the Russian market. It has historically been one of the most loyal Western companies in Russia and had presence in the country since 1852.

Siemens maintained a small presence even in Soviet Union, but Putin's Russia has become too toxic even for them.

Russia accounts for just 1% of Siemens’ global sales, but its train-making business has been important for Russian Railways in terms of technologies.

It will go on as an avalanche. Open / Comment

2022-05-11 18:52:53 Russian spy chief Sergei Naryshkin said today the US are spreading of fake information on Telegram in an attempt to "discredit" and "dehumanise Russia's political and military leadership in the eyes of the Russian people".

For those who forgot - Naryshkin is the funny guy who was humiliated and chewed out by Putin during the Security Council meeting on February, 22.

Millions of people saw how the terrified chief of foreign intelligence was stuttering and mumbling online.

No American help is needed for discrediting Russian leadership in the eyes of people. Pathetic and totally unprofessional likes of Naryshkin are doing this job perfectly.

How was it even possible to appoint him the head of an elite intelligence service. Open / Comment

2022-05-11 18:26:51 Sales of new cars and light commercial vehicles in Russia decreased by 78.5% compared to April 2021, according to the latest data of AEB.

New car sales in Russia are actually contracting for the tenth month in a row.

The production in the country's biggest auto producer Avtovaz has been already disrupted.

You rarely see the collapse of a relatively significant market online. Open / Comment