Nigel Gould-Davies: Russia’s War Is Becoming Unsustainable. Now The Real Crisis Is About to Begin

Nigel Gould-Davies: Russia’s War Is Becoming Unsustainable. Now The Real Crisis Is About to Begin

Author: Decoding Geopolitics June 20, 2026 Duration: 32:31

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➡️ Full Nigel's report: https://www.iiss.org/research-paper/2026/05/the-coming-crisis-in-russias-political-economy/


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This is a conversation with Nigel Gould Davis - a Senior Fellow for Russia and Eurasia at the IISS. Nigel recently published a really interesting report about why Russia's war, on its present course, has reached a breaking point - when it is no longer economically and demographically sustainable.


What Nigel argues is that this will almost inevitably result in a major crisis, both political and financial, that is about to hit Russia within about a year from now - and why in order to keep fighting, the Kremlin will be forced to strip away the last freedoms Russians have and drag the country back toward a Soviet-style governance and economy, with all the social upheaval that it would bring. It’s a fascinating analysis that follows a clear logic and a chain of events - and it’s definitely worth listening to.


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