The West Really Doesn't Understands Russia.

"Russia's war with Ukraine is hurting them!"

London (CNN Business)Six months after invading Ukraine, Russia is bogged down in a war of attrition it didn't anticipate but it is having success on another front — its oil-dependent economy is in a deep recession but proving far more resilient than expected.

"I'm driving through Moscow and the same traffic jams are there as before," says Andrey Nechaev, who was Russia's economy minister in the early 1990s.

The readiness of China and India to snap up cheap Russian oil has helped, but Nechaev and other analysts say Russia's economy has started to decline and is likely facing a prolonged period of stagnation as a consequence of Western sanctions.

On the surface, not much has changed, bar a few empty storefronts that once housed Western brands that have fled the country in their hundreds. McDonalds (MCD) is now called "Vkusno i tochka", or "Tasty, and that's it" and Starbucks (SBUX) cafes are now gradually reopening under the barely disguised brand Stars Coffee.

The exodus of Western businesses, and wave after wave of punishing Western sanctions targeting Russia's vital energy exports and its financial system, are having an impact, but not in the way many had expected.

So that's the proverbial "Russia is weak" story. Well here comes the "Russia is a threat" story:

KABUL, Aug 29 (Reuters) - The Taliban administration is in the final stages of talks in Moscow over the terms of a contract for Afghanistan to purchase gasoline and benzene from Russia, Afghan officials told Reuters.

Habiburahman Habib, the spokesperson for Afghanistan's Ministry of Economy confirmed that an official delegation chaired by the commerce ministry was in the Russian capital and finalising contracts for supplies of wheat, gas and oil.

"They are in negotiation with the Russian side," he said in a message to Reuters, adding they would share details once the contracts were complete.

A source from the office of the Minister of Commerce and Industry told Reuters technical officials from his ministry and the Ministry of Finance had stayed in Moscow to work on the contracts after a ministerial delegation visited this month.

"We are working on text of contract, (we have) almost agreed on gasoline and benzene," said the official, adding they expected it to be finished soon.

Spokespeople at Russia's foreign and energy ministries did not respond to requests for comment.

The contracts come after a Taliban delegation led by the acting commerce minister visited Russia in mid-August to hold talks on trade.

If completed, the contract would be a sign of foreign countries increasingly doing business with the Taliban, despite its administration not being officially recognised by any international government since it took control of the country after U.S. troops withdrew around a year ago.

It comes as the United States tries to convince other nations to cut down on use of Russian oil, saying the initiative is aimed at curbing the oil revenue that Moscow uses to finance its invasion of Ukraine.

Both Russia and Taliban-led Afghanistan face economic sanctions from international governments, including the United States.

And before anyone pulls out a "new Axis of Evil" card:

No foreign government, including Moscow, formally recognises the Taliban administration and Afghanistan's banks have been hampered by the sanctions which have left most international banks unwilling to carry out transactions with Afghan banks.