# Russia Fires Top Bank Economist After He Warns Moscow Is Losing War of Attrition

*Monday, August 17, 2026 at 12:08 PM UTC — Hamer Intelligence Services Desk*

**Published**: 2026-08-17T12:08:43.003Z (4h ago)
**Category**: markets | **Region**: Eastern Europe
**Importance**: 8/10
**Sources**: OSINT
**Permalink**: https://hamerintel.com/data/articles/14742.md
**Source**: https://hamerintel.com/summaries

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**Deck**: Russia’s state development bank has dismissed chief economist Andrei Klepach after a speech went viral in which he said Moscow would not win an economic ‘war of attrition’ and is falling behind major powers. The move exposes Kremlin sensitivity over long‑term capacity to fund the Ukraine war and signals growing tension between economic reality and official messaging.

Russia has removed one of its most prominent economic voices from a key state institution after he publicly questioned the country’s ability to endure a prolonged confrontation with the West over Ukraine. Andrei Klepach, chief economist at state development bank VEB.RF, was fired after a speech went viral in which he warned that Russia would not win in a “war of attrition” and is falling behind not only the United States and China, but other countries as well. His dismissal, reported on 17 August, underscores how tightly the Kremlin is now policing narratives about the sustainability of its war‑time economy. In the recorded remarks, Klepach said Russia suffers from “the…

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