Janice R. Andrews
On the French television station LCI, General Michel Yakovleff—a former deputy chief of staff for NATO—offered a sobering assessment of the situation between Russia and Ukraine. Yakovleff said that “the war is Putin’s choice, and if the Kremlin chief decides tonight to stop, then it is over, the war is over.” Additionally, he emphasized Putin’s regime’s weakness by saying, “Putin’s regime is less stable than it seems.”
Yakovleff claims that Putin’s Russia is heading toward a catastrophic economic, social, and cultural downturn. He pointed out that “Russia is heading for disaster, economically, socially and culturally, and has been so since Putin came to power, not since 2022.” According to Yakovleff, deep-rooted systemic problems have only accelerated Russia’s collapse, making the 2022 invasion of Ukraine unnecessary.
Yakovleff highlighted Russia’s demographic crisis as one important factor. “Russia has 144 million inhabitants, by 2050 it will be 120 million: so not only will there be fewer of them, but it will also be an older population,” he said. A major long-term threat to Russia’s stability and self-sufficiency is this demographic transition.
Finally, Yakovleff stressed that “you can’t fight demographics, so there are long-term reasons for us to be optimistic.” This should reassure those who are worried about Russia’s future.
