iPath S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures ETN (VXX)

[risk on]

Ha, that's just propaganda, and Putin does nothing that won't benefit him. The benefit here is playing Greece against the west in hopes it creates market strife, by a Greek default, which it will. Because , even if EZ had the Greek default fully contained, it's still uncharted water, and the seeds are planted for what "could be". "If Greece did it, what's to stop Spain and italy?" that thought in and of itself would create panic, and Putin is very aware of this.