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| Can this nightmare be averted? |
Let's begin by what I personally consider bad news: either Putin really believes in liberal market economics or he has to say he does. He began his Q&A and ended it with a categorical expression of full support for the policies of the Central Bank and its Chairwoman, Nabiulina, and a no less categorical expression of support for the Government and its Prime Minister, Medvedev. Worse, Putin declared that he believes that market forces will by themselves correct the current disequilibria. At most, he agreed that certain decisions should have been taken earlier or more forcefully, but that's it.
Some will love it. Lew Rockwell went as far as to say that he would hand Elvira Nabiulina the award of "Central Banker of the Year". Not everybody agrees. For example, Victor Gerashchenko, a former Chairman of the Central Bank, declared that if he had been in the position of Nabiulina today he would have "asked for a gun to shoot himself".
I have to admit that I personally am dismayed by Putin's apparent beliefs in market economics. I say 'apparent' because there might be things going on which I am not aware of. For example, while Putin speaks of "market forces" China seems to get heavily involved in the Russian economic crisis. For those interested in these developments, please check the following sources:
