A Troubled Rouble and Gaza’s Tons of Rubble

Russia stood tall among the 120 countries that voted that Israel cease fire in Gaza for the protection of civilians and to uphold legal and humanitarian obligations. 

Casting a grim gaze over Gaza, over torn human nerves and tons of rubble, Russia, and indeed China, championed the humane cause to reclaim our sanity at a time when the world seems to have lost its soul. 

Russia, China and 118 other countries voted for a United Nations resolution demanding Israel to stop the carnage that Hamas started, though this mutual exchange of hate and harm predates October 7.

UN Vote For Israel to Cease Retaliatory Attacks on Gaza

Albeit, Russia and other peace-loving countries defeated 14 countries that the United States led in voting against the cessation of hostilities on both sides. 

Russia and the rest of the world won despite the 45 countries that abstained from voting for a ceasefire led by the United Kingdom and its Western counterparts.

Yet Israel is not backing down. Hamas still holds hundreds of people hostage, and sadly, the killing of little children and innocent women and men continues, with far more casualties on the Gaza side.

Why is Benjamin Netanyahu adamant? Why are Hamas and its armed sympathizers defiant? Why is Vladimir Putin’s call for peace ignored?

Could it be that a third of countries in the United Nations are telling Russia to look at the man in the mirror?

If Russia looked into its mirror, it would see a country more defiant to global reason than Israel currently is. Russia continues its invasion and aggression on Ukraine today despite a more resounding UN vote that condemned the act.

“The United Nations General Assembly has voted to demand that Russia stop its offensive and immediately withdraw all troops, with world powers and tiny island states alike condemning Moscow.

“The vote on Wednesday saw 141 states vote in favour of the motion, five against and 35 abstentions,“ Al Jazeera reported.

UN Vote for Russia to Cease its Invasion and Aggression against Ukraine

Russia is more adamant about the voices of 141 countries calling for peace in Ukraine than Israel’s defiance to the voices of 120 countries suing for peace in Gaza. Maybe Putin lost his moral ground against Netanyahu here.

Yet, Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, has shown that Russia prefers to reduce Ukraine to rubble than revamp its own troubled rouble.

Russia’s Troubled Rouble

As things are now, graffiti of troubled countries and their tumbled currencies may have Russia scribbled on some corners of the mischievous art.

In August, one Russian rouble was finally reduced to below 10 cents in the United States.

Forbes reported in August that Russia’s rouble slipped past 100 roubles per U.S. dollar, “a nearly 17-month low that has sparked internal discord over monetary policy as economic pressures from its ongoing war in Ukraine mount and international sanctions erode Moscow’s income streams.” 

“The slump, part of an accelerating downward trend in recent weeks, is a long way from the ruble’s record low in March 2022—it hit around 120 against the dollar shortly after Moscow launched its invasion—but almost half its value in June 2022, when it hit a multi-year high despite international sanctions.

According to CBS,  the slide in the currency’s value comes “as Russia continues to face international sanctions as well as its ongoing military conflict. The nation has used aggressive measures to keep money from leaving the country, while also benefitting from fossil-fuel sales to prop up its economy. 

“But a weaker ruble could increase the cost of imports, while also boosting inflation — with central bank deputy director Alexei Zabotkin on Friday saying that he expects inflation to continue to rise.”

However, by October, the Russian ruble surged after Putin ordered 43 companies to prop up the slumping currency by selling some of their foreign cash, Fortune reported.

Then came the turn of Israel’s shekel to plunge in value against the US dollar. The troubled country saw its currency tumble to 3.912 shekel to a dollar two days after the country was invaded and attacked by Hamas.