Investments Will Remain a Gamble Until Rule of Law Comes to Russia
The Wall Street Journal comments that we know, from the World Bank, that Russia's economy is going through hard times. It is rich in resources but has low per capita GDP, declining output and employment, and rising poverty.
Harvard professor Robert Barro analyzed data from some 100 countries and concluded that "an expansion of the rule of law would raise economic growth and lead over time to higher standards of living and, hence, to more democracy." So the future of the Russian economy depends on its progress toward becoming a nation under law, which doesn't seem to be in Russia's immediate future.
The Wall Street Journal comments that Mikhail Khodorkovsky will be fortunate to avoid the fate of Sergei Magnitsky, attorney for William Browder's Hermitage Capital, who died in jail awaiting trial after being denied medical treatment for an extraordinarily painful ailment.