Vladimir Putin He will address the nation on February 29. What will he talk about? Maybe he'll mention it
Appeal of representatives of separatist TransnistriaRussia was asked to take measures to “protect” this region under conditions of “increased pressure” from Moldova – as they declared.
This would mean the situation at the front in Ukraine and the planned presidential “elections” in March, i.e. a referendum, which – according to international observers – will have nothing to do with democracy. Suffice it to say that no candidate who openly criticizes Kremlin policy will run against the Russian president.
Is this what Vladimir Putin really fears? “He decided he couldn't back down.”
In the last episode of the Radio ZET podcast “Machina Watzi” the professor talked about what the dictator thinks and plans. Agnieszka Lecucka is a political scientist and expert at the Polish Institute of International Affairs. In his opinion, such “election theater” is not aimed at ordinary Russians.
– In such a well-organized election process, he shows the effectiveness of his power as crisis management. This is a signal to the elite that surrounds him: is it worth betting on someone else or is it worth “hanging on” to Putin? For example, not everyone supports what is happening in Ukraine, but they know that being outside the system means losing wealth. Loyalty is still bought, she explained.
According to Leguka, Putin's actions are governed by fear. – He fears losing power all the time. It's not some super macho thing. He is afraid of falling from the pedestal, the expert argued, pointing out that Russia operates according to a different logic than democracies, with the possibility of open power transition, rotation and expressing one's opinion.
In his opinion, the Russian president is clinging to power, and thanks to the war, he gets more excuses to legitimize his authoritarian rule. – He tells the Russians that “someone is waiting for them”, “NATO is expanding to the east”. We could see a shift from autocracy to a de facto semi-authoritarian system, he admitted.
Are we at risk of attack from Russia? “Should we be prepared for every eventuality?
The conversation also touched on the interview the dictator gave to American Tucker Carlson. He noted that he did not “want to attack Poland, Latvia or any other country until Russia was attacked”. So, in the face of such pompous denial, should we be more alert to Russia's provocations?
– We must be prepared for every eventuality, especially when Russia will use force and increase tension – the political scientist admitted, “Putin argued until the end that he did not want to attack Ukraine.”
Agnieszka Legukka spoke a lot about Alexei Navalny – the leader of the anti-Kremlin opposition, who died on February 16 in a penal colony in northwestern Russia. Will Alexei Navalny's death shock Russia? Who was really the most prominent anti-Kremlin dissident, and in what stereotype did the West view him? How does Vladimir Putin benefit from death? This was also discussed in the latest episode of “Machina Władzy”.
Source: Radio ZET
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