Reports of Russia’s decline are greatly exaggerated

News Snapshot:

Those cutting through discussions on global power politics have been making blasé assumptions about the end game of the Russia-Ukraine war. The initial expectation that the Russian military would overrun Ukraine in weeks has been belied. Russia’s image as a superpower, barely two years into the war, appears dented. There is neither an immediate Russian victory in sight nor signs of Ukraine backing down. Instead, Western propagandists are going the whole hog declaring Russia as a diminished power; its final defeat a matter of time — a veiled swipe also directed at China, which is challenging the US’s global supremacy....