I’ve several post here implying the collapse of Russia is nigh.
What is the situation in Ukraine.
Ukraine has benefited from $200 billion infusion from the West since 2022.
Ukraine’s labor market in 2026 is facing pressure from several overlapping systemic crises. The unemployment rate stands at 11.3% — nearly twice the EU average of 5.9% — while 75% of enterprises report labor shortages. More than 5.9 million Ukrainians are currently abroad, a significant share of men are engaged in the country’s defense, and 46.5% of the population remains economically inactive.
Population aging is reducing the country’s labor potential, mobilization has drawn a significant share of men out of the labor market, and the professional skills of those willing to work often do not match employers’ needs.
The most acute labor shortages are in skilled blue-collar occupations, including welders, carpenters, sewists, drivers, electrical technicians, maintenance fitters, and CNC machine operators, as well as physicians across a range of specialties (particularly family physicians, internists, and pediatricians) and workers in the retail and restaurant sectors.
Ukraine’s economy is enduring its toughest period since the early months of Russia’s invasion after sustained air strikes left its power system in tatters as the war enters a fifth year, forcing firms to cut output and shrinking state revenues.
From steel mills to miners, cement makers and food producers, Ukrainian industry is being forced to cut output and absorb rising costs as it struggles to shift work schedules and save equipment from emergency shutdowns, executives at eight companies said.
In February, the monthly business activity recovery index of the Institute for Economic Research in Kyiv – which compares the number of companies reporting that business is worse or better than last year - turned negative for the first time since 2023.
A jump in the level of Ukraine’s debt to almost 100% of gross domestic product – despite two restructurings - has unsettled some investors.
https://www.firstpost.com/explainers/russian-strikes-expose-ukraine-air-defence-shortage-patriot-missiles-nato-summit-explained-14029508.html
Russia’s overnight barrage on Monday has once again spotlighted a challenge that Kyiv has repeatedly warned its Western partners about for months which is its dwindling supply of advanced air-defence interceptors, especially to defend against ballistic missile strikes.
According to Ukrainian military data, Russia launched one of its largest combined aerial attacks, employing hundreds of drones alongside dozens of missiles against Kyiv and surrounding regions.
Ukrainian air-defence units successfully intercepted more than 90 per cent of the 351 drones involved in the assault and also destroyed 37 additional missiles during the operation.
However, the picture looked dramatically different when it came to ballistic weapons. Ukraine’s military reported that it failed to shoot down any of the ballistic missiles launched during the attack.
The United States cannot send any defense missiles. It has a shortage. What few they have are utilized in the Iran War.
There is a growing sense of foreboding over the continuation of the war in Ukraine as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy faces mounting backlash at home. Questions are being raised about the flow of Western aid and the specter of corruption in its use, even as reports of desertion at the front undermine Ukraine’s military readiness.
Zelenskyy’s push for more Western assistance is colliding with a Europe weary of the war’s economic costs. Belgium, Greece, Spain, France, Italy, and Poland—all carrying public debt near 90 percent of GDP—are seeing growing domestic discontent. Economists warn that further aid and expanded anti-Russian sanctions risk tipping these fragile economies closer to financial crisis, potentially pushing debt levels above 100 percent of GDP if the conflict drags on.
Western efforts to cripple Russia’s economy have largely failed. NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, in an interview with The New York Times, admitted grimly: “Russia is now producing three times as much ammunition in three months as NATO does in a year.” This imbalance underscores Ukraine’s mounting challenges—from dwindling resources to declining morale.
Reports indicate widespread failure of mobilization efforts and critical shortages of personnel. Independent experts estimate that since the start of the conflict, more than 260,000 Ukrainian soldiers have abandoned their posts.
Ukraine’s economic crisis is equally dire. The country faces what analysts describe as “complete bankruptcy,” compounded by a mass population exodus, including conscription-age men. Recent reporting by The Financial Times revealed Ukraine lost nearly $770 million to corruption and failed arms procurement deals—funds that were paid to intermediaries for weapons and ammunition that never arrived.
Across Europe, popular support for the war is eroding. Citizens, already burdened by inflation and illegal migration concerns, are questioning why billions are sent to Kyiv while domestic needs go unmet—especially when allegations of theft by Ukrainian officials surface regularly.
My view of these war is 2 punch drunk pugilists barely hanging in the fight.
The Western support is critical for the Ukraine economy. Without it, Ukraine is finished.
And after the war?
Who will pay for this rebuilding?
