Top Russian Economist Dies After Falling out of Window

Valentina Bondarenko, a top Russian economist, has died at the age of 82 after falling out of her apartment window in Moscow, Russian state-run media reported on Tuesday.

Bondarenko, a leading research fellow at the Institute of Economics of the Russian Academy of Sciences in Moscow, fell out of her apartment window on Monday evening, emergency services told news agency Tass.

"She fell out of the window of her apartment, unfortunately, it was not possible to save her, the injuries she received were incompatible with life," the source said.

Newsweek has contacted Russia's Foreign Ministry for comment by email.

The Context

While the circumstances behind Bondarenko's death remain unclear, a number of prominent Russian officials have died after falling out of windows since President Vladimir Putin's war against Ukraine began in February 2022, including a top oil executive and a defense official.

Here is a full list of all the Russian officials who have died after falling out of windows since the war began.

What We Know

The emergency services source told Tass that per preliminary information, Bondarenko's "death is not of a criminal nature, the woman had been ill for a long time."

"On the surface, it looks like a suicide, but investigators are also checking the version of an accident," the Russian Telegram channel MK: Urgent News, said on Tuesday.

According to Russian news outlets, Bondarenko had worked at the Institute of Economics of the Russian Academy of Sciences since 1988, and was appointed director of the economic research organization, the International N.D. Kondratiev Foundation in 1993—a position she held until her her death on Monday.

She completed her postgraduate studies at the institute in 1991 after completing a dissertation on the topic of political economy, and published more than 220 works in Russia and in international publications during her career.

Views

"Terrible news about Valentina Bondarenko's tragic accident. Her expertise in socio-economic forecasting will be deeply missed," one X (formerly Twitter) user wrote on Wednesday, reacting to news of her death.

Another X user suggested that her death wasn't an accident.

"Another victim of bloody Putin and his bottomless insecurity and paranoia. Rest in Peace, Valentina Bondarenko," they wrote.

What's Next?

Emergency services are investigating how Bondarenko fell out of her apartment window.

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