Russia: A Petrostate in a Time of Worldwide Economic Recession and Political Turmoil

As a mono-energy-economy, Russia's fortunes are closely linked to the price of energy. That same link explains why when energy prices hit record highs, there was such strong public support for Vladimir Putin. But when energy prices plummeted in late 2008, Russia found itself with an economic downturn which brought with it factory closings, worker layoffs, and political grumbling. Because of Russia's inexperience with economic upheaval, Russia is likely to go through greater turmoil and political uncertainty, if not unrest, than more traditional market economies which over the years have had to learn how to deal with economic cycles of this sort.