The whole point of the big Russian elite is that the economy doesn't matter at all. Without bread, you will eat cakes. Our mission is to save your souls, not fill your bellies.
arch:.
The importance of the economy in the modern world is overestimated. Its influence on politics is there, but it is really not important - it is, in fact, of secondary importance.
The philosophical-religious block, the deep civilizational one, always comes first. In second place is the great geopolitics. And only somewhere in third or fourth place are current economic interests.
Chinese threat.