RUSSIA - Sanctions Failed to Bite
In March 2022 France’s economy and finance minister Bruno Le Maire declared, ‘We will bring down the Russian economy.’ Twelve packages of sanctions later, Russia’s economic growth is expected to top that of the European Union and the United States for a second year: GDP rose by 3.6% in 2023, and this April the International Monetary Fund raised its forecast for 2024 to 3.2%. The militarization of the economy, labor shortages and problems accessing Western technology could all have a negative impact in the medium term, but this strong overall performance so far has been a major surprise for the West.
Le Maire’s view aligned with those of US president Joe Biden and European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, reflecting a Western consensus that the invasion of Ukraine would be halted by shortages of weapons and cash due to a lack of electronic components and falling oil revenues. Two years on, that hasn’t happened. Why the huge gap between expectations and reality?
In any case, the size of a country’s economy is an imperfect measure of its strength. Despite undeniable weaknesses, such as over-dependence on oil and gas revenues, Russia is among the world’s leaders in a number of strategic sectors: it is one of the top three producers of hydrocarbons, non-ferrous metals and cereals, the leading exporter of nuclear reactors, and one of the top three space powers. In 2023 it notched up 19 orbital launches, while the EU as a whole managed only three.
-mondediplo.com, July 2024
Arno's Commentary
This report is quite surprising, and not reflected much in major global media.
Russia’s power has been vastly underestimated. Not because it is the world’s largest country by far, but its people are diligent and capable of exhibiting extreme endurance of hardships.
We learned this from the Second World War. Nazi Germany invaded Russia and intended to eradicate the nation. That did not happen. Actually, when the Allies effectively entered the war, Russia had already eliminated approximately 83% of the entire German military force.
Our concern, however, is the Church of Jesus Christ. It is a living organism present on all five continents, in all nations, and is in the stages of being completed.
“According to the World Christian Encyclopedia, approximately 2.7 million convert to Christianity annually from another religion; also … Christianity ranks in first place in net gains through religious conversion” (en.wikipedia.org).
What will happen when the Church of Jesus Christ has reached its fullness from among the Gentiles? Here, Romans 11 proclaims a wonderful message: “For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob” (verses 25-26).
Arno Froese is the executive director of Midnight Call Ministries and editor-in-chief of the acclaimed prophetic magazines Midnight Call and News From Israel. He has authored a number of well-received books, and has sponsored many prophecy conferences in the U.S., Canada, and Israel. His extensive travels have contributed to his keen insight into Bible prophecy, as he sees it from an international perspective.
