Since the end of the Cold War, the Mother Russia has been gradually slipping into a rut from which no country has been able to climb from. Major problems arose once Russia was forced to change it's economic focus from the defense industry to the country's foundation. Because Russia wasn't able to gradually wean itself from their major defense spending addiction they must now deal with these moneys being unskillfully dumped into the rest of the economy. This is a country that has allowed millions to die of common disease. Three cheers for the Mir.
Technology spins the world today.
The silicon chip and cheaper, lighter metals are the results of technological evolution. For example, the 286 chip to the 386 to the 486 to the Power PC chip. This is a result of spending nearly fifty years and billions of dollars developing these technological industries. Russian industry was never given these opportunities. Gone is their need for a fat military.