Boris Vishnevsky’s blog post, 6.04.2021

Photo by jenoche/depositphotos

The Russian authorities intend to conduct a nationwide election campaign in an atmosphere of military hysteria.

I don’t want to repeat once again the phrase about “a small victorious war”, which the Putin regime is once again extremely in need, but we have to – everything is developing too alarmingly around Ukraine, as Russian troops are being pulled up to its borders.

This is happening against the backdrop of the fact that President Putin has been increasingly talking about the “Russian lands and traditional historical territories” allegedly “donated” to the former Soviet republics, which they should have returned by leaving the USSR.

Vladimir Medinsky, former Minister of Culture, and now presidential aide, speaking in the Federation Council, urges to think over, “how did it happen that the Great Russian lands ended up on the territory of Ukraine, Kazakhstan and even Belarus.”

And the leader of the puppet “People’s Republic of Donetsk” Pushilin declares that “he does not rule out the possibility of Kiev’s full-scale attack on Donbass” (as one have to come up with an “excuse” in advance when shifting the blame)…

Can Putin start a new war?

Yes, he can.

The main political institutions turned into mere scenery will not offer him any resistance in this.

Neither the obedient Federation Council, nor the caricatured State Duma, nor the servile Public Prosecutor’s Office, nor loyal courts will do this.

“Russia has consistently rejected all proposals for a real peaceful settlement in Donbass aimed at demilitarization of the region, and maintains and increases its military participation there, blocks the exchange of prisoners, continues to incite hatred towards Ukraine and propaganda for war,” runs the statement of the Yabloko Congress which took place pas weekend. Also, in the same statement: “A state built on lies and violence towards its citizens pursues the same foreign policies. Russia exports unfreedom and the threat of war all over the world. The Yabloko party warns the Russian society that Vladimir Putin’s policy may lead to a new war in East Ukraine, new deaths, destruction of the system of international relations, ousting Russia into a historical dead end, and destruction of the country’s civilisational prospects.”

The stance of Yabloko, which opposes the war, is fundamentally opposite to the position of the four State Duma parties, indistinguishable to the point of confusion, fully supporting Putin’s foreign policy and dreaming, together with him, of the restoration of the Soviet empire.

It is the Yabloko stance, and not the position of Putin and the Duma parties, that corresponds to the interests of Russian citizens, who absolutely do not need a new war.

With no one. And even more so with Ukraine.

And one more thing: from the text of Yabloko’s statement submitted to the Congress by Lev Shlosberg, Grigory Yavlinsky and Nikolai Rybakov:

“We see a direct connection between the militarisation of Russia’s foreign policy with the situation and the political attitudes of the authorities inside the country. This aggravation of the situation is accompanied by strengthening of the state propaganda for war, militarisation of public consciousness, and poisons the entire atmosphere in the country. It is in the atmosphere of military hysteria that the Russian authorities intend to conduct a nationwide election campaign.”

We have already seen one such campaign, in the fall of 1999.

When the “second Chechen war” began, against which Yabloko opposed (and which was supported not only by the Kremlin, but also by the Union of Right-Wing Forces [who declared themselves a liberal party]), for because of which it [Yabloko] was subjected to unprecedented persecution and defamation.

It was this campaign that brought Vladimir Putin to power.

Does someone believe that he will not dare to repeat it in order to ensure retaining the power he received then?

It is the State Duma, which will be elected in the fall of 2021, that will work in 2024, when the presidential elections are to be held.

By the way, Vladimir Putin has just signed a law allowing him to be elected two more times after “resetting” his presidential terms…

In 1999, society could have stopped the Successor operation by supporting in the elections the opponents of the war.

That did not happen. The consequences are well-known.

Now, supporting in the elections the opponents of the war, it is possible to stop the operation “Resetting of Presidential Terms”.

You just need not to miss this chance.

Remembering that only Yabloko is against the war – as it was then.

My Telegram channel https://t.me/visboris

Source: https://echo.msk.ru/blog/boris_vis/2817062-echo/

BORIS VISHNEVSKY

is Deputy Chairman of the Yabloko Party, member of the Yabloko Federal Political Committee and  Bureau. Leader of the Yabloko faction in the Legislative Assembly of St. Petersburg