Changes

The obvious reason for the failure was a fundamental misunderstanding of the size, development and importance of the Russian economy. The idea that Russia was "a gas station with [[nuke]]s," had sunk into the [[Western civilization|Western]] received wisdom. Former President [[Barack Obama]] said that "Russia doesn't make anything," while the idea that Russia's economy was "about the size of [[Italy]]'s" was commonplace, adding to the sense that Russia would be an economic pushover.  

The obvious reason for the failure was a fundamental misunderstanding of the size, development and importance of the Russian economy. The idea that Russia was "a gas station with [[nuke]]s," had sunk into the [[Western civilization|Western]] received wisdom. Former President [[Barack Obama]] said that "Russia doesn't make anything," while the idea that Russia's economy was "about the size of [[Italy]]'s" was commonplace, adding to the sense that Russia would be an economic pushover.  

It is true that in nominal terms Russia's economy was only a little larger than Italy's before the beginning of Russia's [[Special Military Operation]]. Nominal GDP, however, simply uses current national currency exchange rates with the dollar to compare one nation with another. It thus fails to capture real purchasing power & [[inflation]]. Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) measurements of GDP seek to remedy this, and Russia's GDP PPP, not really needing much foreign currency, is far better even compared to Germany than it is to Italy's.  Looking at GDP in PPP terms removes price level differences and allows a better comparison, especially of living standards, between countries.  In these terms Russia overtook Germany in the summer of 2023 to become the fifth wealthiest economy in the world and the largest in Europe, worth $5.3 trillion.

It is true that in nominal terms Russia's economy was only a little larger than Italy's before the beginning of Russia's [[Special Military Operation]]. Nominal GDP, however, simply uses current national currency exchange rates with the dollar to compare one nation with another. It thus fails to capture real purchasing power & [[inflation]]. Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) measurements of GDP seek to remedy this, and Russia's GDP PPP, not really needing much foreign currency, is far better even compared to Germany than it is to Italy's.  Looking at GDP in PPP terms removes price level differences and allows a better comparison, especially of living standards, between countries.  In these terms Russia overtook Germany in the summer of 2023 to become the fifth wealthiest economy in the world and the largest in Europe, worth $5.3 trillion.<ref>https://intellinews.com/russia-overtakes-germany-to-become-fifth-biggest-economy-in-the-world-in-gdp-on-a-ppp-basis-286944/?source=russia</ref>

==See also==

==See also==