George Shultz on Russya

       Veteran diplomat and U.S. Department leader during the Reagan years,, offered his insights into the current state of affairs in Russya, Vladimir Putin's playground and field of dreams.  In response to the interviewer's questions, Mr. Shultz replied that "Putin is playing the weak hand of Russya.  The economy of Russya is suffering deep malaise and does not appear to be able to grow itself out of this situation.  More seriously, the demographics of the country indicate a dismal future generation that continues to decline as the current fertile cohort does not feature any hope of population growth.  Matching and mismatching most of the West's declining birth rate, Russya will not be able to provide replacements for all the upcoming retirements across the economic spectrum.
The future is clouded by Putin's insistence of international forays and intrusions across the globe.  Some things never change.