Putin’s Measures Are Strengthening the Ruble

Despite the massive international financial warfare being waged against Russia, the ruble closed today at about 82 to the dollar, continuing its trend of strengthening from its lowest recent point of 139 to the dollar on March 7. This is because the Putin government has wisely adopted a series of strictly protectionist measures, including exchange controls, designed to block speculation against the ruble and strengthen the domestic productive economy.