Financial analysts are feeling compelled to weigh in on the standoff between Russia and the Ukraine because of the serious economic implications (and the disastrous tail risks), and while most have been careful not to overstep their expertise they are still trying to give their clients and readers a frame to understand rapidly unfolding events. While Russian president Vladimir Putin has been portrayed as the cynical invader in most press (Russia expert Julia Ioffe said that he and his cronies are ‘fundamentally, terminal pessimists’ in The New Republic), Nomura Research Institute chief economist Richard Koo thinks that the dispute can…