The symbiotic relationship between politics and economics benefits society as a whole, and this carefully constructed and mutually beneficial connection can easily turn sour if one side has a negative impact on the other. To further this statement, saying that economic theories have changed depending on who has political control and that individual politicians can usurp power depending on the state of the economy is hardly a revolutionary idea. An even more fragmented political state develops when the regional government bears the bulk of the national economic burden. This combination of give and take is exemplified in Russia after Putin's return to power, combined with the Russian financial collapse in late 2014. Russia's political ideologies under Putin have exacerbated pre-existing financial instabilities within regional economies and the sharp decline in the price of oil as well as the international economic sanctions imposed on Russia which led to the collapse of the Russian ruble. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”? Get an original essay As the name of Vladimir Putin resonates in every corner of the world, the leader of the world's greatest nation is known to be a figure quite controversial. Putin maintains a pseudo-democracy that could be described as potentially more dangerous than the pure autocracy that Russians have suffered from for decades. Even for centuries, Russia has experienced a tumultuous political climate; more precisely: “Nearly two decades after the fall of communism, Russia is not a democracy. But it is also not an absolute autocracy like, for example, Cuba or North Korea. In other words, Russia claims to be democratic…” (Shevtsova). However, claiming to be democratic comes from years of chaos and uncertainty. With the help of Western governments, the World Bank, and the International Monetary Fund, Russia underwent the largest and fastest privatization in its history to establish a fully nationalized Soviet economy. But seven years after the fall of the Soviet Union, Russia suffered the financial crisis of 1998, and at the time, regional governments shouldered the bulk of Russia's economic burden. During these seven years, Russia entered a deep depression, and the financial crisis of 1998 worsened an already dire situation. Boris Yeltsin overcame Russia's economic woes as best he could, and the economy only truly recovered when demand for oil increased. However, hours before the first day of the year 2000, Yeltsin announced his resignation, leaving the government in the hands of Vladimir Putin, a former KGB official and head of the FSB. Putin's actions during his previous and current terms reflect the frighteningly obvious connection between a country's political climate and its economic situation. For Putin, during his first term, he rebuilt an impoverished Russia with the help of Russian oligarchs or wealthy businessmen who were former officials of the Soviet Union. Putin's association with officials from the former Soviet Union surprised no one, if any, when he described the collapse of the Soviet Union as "...the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the 20th century" (BBC ). His hopeful ideals in the Soviet Union continue to plunge Russia into a divided political state and further aggravate existing economic problems. Given its vast size, Russiaharvests an abundant amount of natural resources, which it uses for economic purposes. Like the 1998 financial crisis, the roots of 2014's economic woes revolve around oil prices, the main resource of their economy. In other words, "Russia gets about half of its budget revenue from taxes on oil and natural gas, and as long as the price of oil falls, its economy will likely continue to sink." (McLaughlin). The collapse of the ruble in 2014 was not but directly linked to oil. The Russian economy has also been deeply affected by an unbalanced pension system, inflation and harsh US and European sanctions. Besides oil, the most notable cause of this period of economic instability is believed to be the international sanctions imposed on Russia during the Ukraine crisis. In response to the Crimean Crisis and the annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation that followed shortly thereafter, several governments and international organizations, led by the United States and the European Union, imposed sanctions on individuals and to Russian companies. On October 3, 2014, Joe Biden even declared: “We do not want Russia to collapse. We want Russia to succeed. But Putin must make a choice. These asymmetrical advances on another country cannot be tolerated. The international system would collapse if they did so. (Biden). Russia continues to push the boundaries of the political spectrum, even though it already suffers from problems such as inflation. Inflation is directly linked to issues such as unemployment, which in turn affects political policies. Russia's annual inflation for 2014 was 11.4%, the highest level of inflation since 2008, and combining this very high percentage with the fall of the ruble, consumer prices, especially food prices, have started to skyrocket. The various factors at the origin of the economic instabilities from 2014, still visible today, have had definite political effects. In 2012, Putin regained presidential power, but the international community questioned the logistics of his election. Specifically, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe observed blatant fraud, “…including brazen ballot stuffing.” (Schwirtz). The legality of this election sparked protests in the streets of Russia, with people calling for a Russia without Putin, but Putin quickly crushed any opposition against him through means of violence, intimidation and coercion. His reassertion of power laid a shaky political foundation that was made worse by the collapse of the Russian ruble in 2014. For Russia, the main political concern of 2014 occurred when Russia seized Crimea, affecting tensions between East and West exponentially increased, and in late 2014, the ruble began to devalue. In 2015, Russia launched military support for its ally President Bashar al-Assad in Syria, and “oil and gas accounted for 43% of government revenues. The World Bank predicts that the poverty rate [in Russia] will reach 14.2% in 2016” (Lee). Now, in 2017, the United States has launched an investigation into Russia's role with the Trump administration. The correlation between Russia's economic situation and the political climate within this vast state is that both sides need each other to succeed. However, the declining economic situation led to a more tense political atmosphere, as the ruble suffered from rising US interest rates as well as economic sanctions. But the ruble fell drastically due to a series of controversial policy decisions made by.