The Russian people are starting to question Russian President Vladimir Putin after the collapse of the ruble on Tuesday, says foreign correspondent L. Todd Wood.
"They're starting to ask, 'Why are we spending $60 billion on Sochi when we're cutting back our medical system? What are we going to do about inflation?' " Wood told Ed Berliner on "MidPoint" on
Newsmax TV Friday.
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"The people are hurting right now, and the oligarchs that surround Putin are being taken care of," he contends.
"[The Russians] were smart in the sense that during the oil boom, they did put away about a half a trillion dollars in the bank for a rainy day," he explained.
"However, that's been dwindling fast with about $80 billion being spent to support the currency," he added.
According to Wood
: "You may be seeing a turning point in this entire crisis.
"Putin is looking for a way out, he's looking for a way to solve the political conflict, which will backstop him being able to revive the economy," he explained.
"Oil is starting to bottom here, so you could start to be seeing the signs of a turnaround in this crisis," he contends.
"[Putin] could come out stronger on the other side of this if the economy rebounds, but that's a big if," he added.
As of Friday, the
ruble's value against the dollar had rallied 34 percent.
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