Top Russian economist ousted after warning of growing costs of Ukraine war

What the report says

Andrey Klepach, the chief economist at Russia’s state development bank VEB, has been removed from his post after comments he made in public about the economic toll of the war in Ukraine became widely reported, according to Al Jazeera citing Russian media and Reuters. The bank said a successor had already been chosen, and Klepach confirmed to Reuters that he had been dismissed. He had held the role since 2014.

Klepach’s remarks, delivered at a financial forum in May and later posted by the Nikitsky Club, were unusually blunt for a senior official linked to a state institution. He said Russia was falling behind other major economies and even Ukraine in some areas, and warned that continued war spending and wider costs could lead to a social crisis. He also argued that Western support for Kyiv was helping Ukraine resist Russian pressure.

The comments come as Russian officials continue to insist the economy remains stable despite sanctions and wartime strain. Al Jazeera reported that Klepach also pointed to rising inequality, slower growth, and pressure on energy and logistics infrastructure. For readers, the development highlights a rare public break from official optimism inside Russia’s economic establishment, at a time when the government is trying to sustain both the war effort and domestic economic stability.