Any leftist government that is going to survive the capitalist American hegemony will necessarily be authoritarian, yes. https://youtu.be/5BybTX3qQiU&t=2m20s
This post (towards the bottom) has some good info on why Russia needs other currencies https://simplicius76.substack.com/p/ukraine-commits-last-remaining-elite
Sure, I'm just saying why "autarky" isn't viable.
A weak currency is going to push up inflation by making imports more expensive, and Russia already has a problem with inflation. The increase in interest rates should push against both those issues
They export a lot of oil and gas
When the Russian interest rate is higher, there is a greater demand for the currency, and the value of the currency rises relative to other currencies. This is just the bank protecting the ruble
That's a Wagner style patch