The prognosis of legendary Hungarian-American business magnate George Soros about the inevitable bankruptcy of Russia in 2017 has not come true, Ivan Danilov writes, outlining Soros' three mistakes.
"The Putin regime faces bankruptcy in 2017, when a large part of its foreign debt matures, and political turmoil may erupt sooner than that," the magnate wrote in February 2016 for The Guardian.
However, contrary to Soros' prediction, Russian bonds enjoy strong demand despite the risk related to sanctions, while the ruble's exchange rate does not indicate that the country is heading towards an economic collapse, Danilov noted.
"To be fair, it should be noted that the American financier did not predict the exact date of Russia's bankruptcy, referring only to the year — 2017. So, he has 24 more days to fulfill the prediction," the economist noted emphasizing three major flaws in Soros' prognosis.
What gives the magnate's statement special piquancy is that it was Soros-affiliated organizations that were engaged in illegal importations of Middle Eastern migrants to EU countries, Danilov pointed out.
"Someone can be amazed at the impudence with which one of the authors of the 'refugee crisis' tries to shift the responsibility to Moscow and make Europeans believe that Middle Eastern migrants and terrorists flooding European cities are part of the plan of the Russian president wishing to bring down the European Union before Russia collapsed," the economist noted.
Soros failed to foresee that Russia will not get bogged down in Syria but will hit it objectives of destroying terrorist targets in a record time, Danilov emphasized. As a result, Moscow has managed to convince the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to cooperate with Russia regardless of Washington's displeasure.
According to the economist, the major reason for the current rise of oil prices is Russia's effective use of force against terrorists in Syria.
"The second mistake of Soros is that he underestimated the Russian economy and the authorities," Danilov highlighted.
The American billionaire presumed that the Russian government will make several gross mistakes in the country's monetary and budgetary policy; he believed that Russia could be isolated from the global market. However, facts proved otherwise.
Since the publication of Soros' forecast, Russia's gold and foreign currency reserves have grown, as well as the demand for Russian bonds, Danilov wrote. He stressed that the Russian market is far from being isolated; quite the contrary, foreign investors and industrial corporations regard it as an attractive one. The economist referred to the construction of a new Mercedes plant which has been started earlier this year in Yesipovo industrial park located in the Moscow region. At the same time German carmaker Volkswagen has reportedly signaled willingness to buy a stake in GAZ, a Russian manufacturer of light commercial vehicles.
All of the above shows that European businesses believe in the prospects for the Russian economy and expect its growth, rather than collapse, Danilov summed up.
"The third mistake of Soros is the most important, and it… reflects the very essence of the collective West's misunderstanding of the mysterious Russian soul," the economist remarked.
According to Danilov, Soros disregarded the fact that, besides its economic obligations, the Russian leadership is protecting the country's national interests, sovereignty and national dignity, which remains the most important part of the "social compact," mentioned by the magnate.
The economist noted that Soros' overconfidence was behind the billionaire's miscalculation. Danilov quoted the American tycoon who, having earned his first $1 billion in 1993, told reporters: "It is a sort of disease when you consider yourself some kind of god, the creator of everything, but I feel comfortable about it now since I began to live it out."
Commenting on the billionaire's statement Danilov suggested that the events of recent years clearly indicated that "the essence of the 'Russian Special Way' is to break the pride of those who imagine themselves to be gods."