XCR1250 Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 Business Insider Russians are freezing as Soviet-era infrastructure in the country crumbles —and Moscow keeps spending on war Russia is experiencing a harsh winter. Sefa Karacan/Anadolu/Getty Images Heating systems are breaking down in Russia's harsh winter, leaving many people freezing as Moscow continues to spend on its war in Ukraine. Parts of Russia are experiencing an unusually cold winter — temperatures in Siberia hit -70 degrees Fahrenheit in December. The brutal conditions are made worse because Russia's infrastructure is poorly maintained, with many of its facilitates dating from the Soviet era, according to media reports. This has caused a spate of breakdowns in central heating systems since December that has even hit parts of the Moscow region and the city of St. Petersburg, The Bell, an independent Russian media outlet, reported on January 16. In one incident, more than a dozen people suffered from burns in the Western Russian city of Nizhny Novgorod when a large heating pipe burst, causing boiling water to flow into the streets, DW reported, citing a local news channel on Telegram. The damaged pipe also caused over 3,000 people to lose access to heating. "We are still using the communal infrastructure that was made during the Soviet era," said Russian lawmaker Svetlana Razvorotneva, who is a member of a national urban engineering committee, per DW. About 40% of the communal heating grid in the country needs to be replaced urgently, she added. However, funding for public utilities made up just 2.2% of Russia's total expenditure last year, according to the Financial Times. In contrast, Moscow's spending on military expenses made up about 21% of Russia's budget in the same year, per Reuters. Russia is also ramping up defense spending to one-third of its budget this year as the war in Ukraine looks set to enter its third year, Russia's finance ministry said in October, per Reuters. As costs for the war add up, the Kremlin will likely need to introduce austerity measures to deal with Russia's budget deficit, UK intelligence reported on Monday. Even so, Russian leader Vladimir Putin is still almost certain to win a fifth term in Russia's presidential election in March. “People are dissatisfied with the state of communal services, but they perceive the situation as a chronic disease," Denis Volkov, the director of Levada Center, an independent research organization, told the FT. "When something breaks, it annoys them, but it does not come as a surprise.” Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anler Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 They are used to the cold. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NaturallyAspirated Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 Mostly because their leadership is absolutely retarded. The Ukraine war is going to leave Russia in absolute shambles, unable to care for itself, unable to extract the resources to keep its citizens warm, itself. The emperor has no clothes. Neal 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XCR1250 Posted February 6 Author Share Posted February 6 36 minutes ago, Anler said: They are used to the cold. True, but also used to being able to heat their homes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rod Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 1 hour ago, NaturallyAspirated said: Mostly because their leadership is absolutely retarded. The Ukraine war is going to leave Russia in absolute shambles, unable to care for itself, unable to extract the resources to keep its citizens warm, itself. The emperor has no clothes. Neal Isn’t their economy doing pretty good and their purchasing power parity around the best in Europe? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ActionfigureJoe Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 That’s not what Tucker says. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NaturallyAspirated Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 3 minutes ago, Rod said: Isn’t their economy doing pretty good and their purchasing power parity around the best in Europe? Depends on how you define good I suppose. Purchasing power being on parity with Europe is one thing, but GDP sliding percentages year over year, imports skyrocketing and exports tumbling tells a different tale. Hundreds of billions of reserves seized, oil revenues down tens of percentage don’t paint a rosy picture either. Meanwhile it can’t afford to keep its citizens warm during winter. Neal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anler Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 10 hours ago, XCR1250 said: True, but also used to being able to heat their homes. Gas is cheap in russia Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XCR1250 Posted February 7 Author Share Posted February 7 1 hour ago, Anler said: Gas is cheap in russia And? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anler Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 8 minutes ago, XCR1250 said: And? And plentiful Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ActionfigureJoe Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 Every Canadian and American here would feel and be better off in Russia. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NaturallyAspirated Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 59 minutes ago, Anler said: And plentiful It ain’t because they harvest and refine it themselves though, they need outside help for that. Neal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ActionfigureJoe Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 1 minute ago, NaturallyAspirated said: It ain’t because they harvest and refine it themselves though, they need outside help for that. Neal Oil products in Russia had to be subsidized by the government due to spiraling costs last year. You won’t hear that from the Putin lovers here. As far as they’re concerned, everything is unicorn farts in Putinland. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akvanden Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 Putin’s a really good leader though. If gas is cheap there, they’ll be happy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anler Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 8 hours ago, NaturallyAspirated said: It ain’t because they harvest and refine it themselves though, they need outside help for that. Neal Like iran? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NaturallyAspirated Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 1 hour ago, Anler said: Like iran? So you suppose there is a reason Iran isn’t super wealthy from their oil… think about it. Neal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mainecat Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 (edited) I’m sure Tucker Carlson will reveal these issues in his interview with Putnut. Edited February 7 by Mainecat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anler Posted February 7 Share Posted February 7 2 hours ago, NaturallyAspirated said: So you suppose there is a reason Iran isn’t super wealthy from their oil… think about it. Neal Thats the problem with Iran, Russia, Venezuela, Libya, Syria... right? Cant have countries selling oil and making money if it isnt Saudis and joos right? America will bankrupt itself to make sure that doesnt happen... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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