Free Republic

But Russia's red-hot wartime economy comes with a price: inflation, which hit 9.8% in September. The price hikes are trickling down to basic food items, with prices of potatoes — a Russian staple — surging this year by 64% as of November 5, according to official statistics. Potatoes' price surge stems from bad weather and the rising cost of production amid a labor shortage and rising wages. It's not just potatoes. The data from Rosstat, Russia's federal statistics service, show that food prices have generally risen across the board this year. In late October, economists on the MMI Telegram channel,...

After a year and a half of war, Ukraine’s leaders now have a new reason to worry: Mounting political chaos in America is threatening to derail their supply of money and weapons. Days after lawmakers shelved a vital U.S. plan to send billions of dollars in aid to Kyiv, U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy was ousted by his own Republican Party colleagues. Aid to Ukraine was named as one of the reasons. In Kyiv, officials are at a loss as to what might happen next. Their staunchest military ally suddenly looks unreliable, despite assurances from President Biden and others the...