Oil arguably brought an end to the old Soviet Union and once again the price of crude is proving to be a curse for the Kremlin. The precipitous drop in oil prices recently has left Vladimir Putin's Russia on the edge of economic ruin. The Kremlin has warned of a severe slowdown next year, with the economy entering a technical recession in the first quarter.
Russia's War Against Ukraine
The Telegraph: How much worse can it get for the Russian bear?
Pedestrians walk along a board listing foreign currency rates against the Russian ruble outside an exchange office in central Moscow on December 12, 2014.
