“Joe Biden is ‘an eccentric grandfather with dementia’. EU leaders are ‘sleepwalkers’. Russia insists Ukraine will ‘disappear from the map’ in the future,” Dmitry Medvedev now addresses the Russian public. Russia’s former president and prime minister, now deputy chairman of the country’s Security Council, has now enthusiastically participated in the genocidal rhetoric that has become the currency of Putin’s wartime political discourse. Critics say the former Russian leader’s frenzied campaigns are a desperate attempt to maintain political prominence, theguardian.com reported.
Dmitry Medvedev, when he became Russia’s president in 2008, promised modernization and liberalization. He went to Silicon Valley and received a new iPhone 4 from Steve Jobs. His image has changed dramatically since the start of Russia’s war in Ukraine.
“I am often asked why my Telegram posts are so harsh,” Medvedev wrote recently. “Well, I will answer: I hate them. They are bastards and degenerates. They want us dead, Russia.He did not specify whether he was referring to Ukrainians, Western politicians, or both.
Medvedev’s physical transformation has been as striking as his ideological transformation: a decade ago he was a boy, looking almost charmingly awkward in a suit leading state interests. He looked tired and bloated now, his eyes icy as he led the hunt westward.
Medvedev’s refreshing personality emerges An attempt to retain political prominence At a time when Medvedev left the presidency in a decade that turned unfavorable. He tries to save himself from political oblivion by outdoing HerodAs a result, he presented himself as a candidate for the Kremlin’s training program – said Russian political scientist Ekaterina Shulman at the Robert Bosch Academy in Berlin.
Maria Puse, a collaborator of jailed Russian opposition activist Alexei Navalny, explained Medvedev’s transformation in a more personal way: When you feel it You are a pointless and pathetic person, like Dmitry, who tries to reinvent himself from time to time. He could shave his head or go to the gym…but Instead, he decided to become a hawk – he said in a video discussion on Medvedev’s strange behavior in May.
Although “Medvedev’s rebirth is often considered tragicIt represents dashed hopes a decade ago, when some believed the system built under Vladimir Putin could carry out some liberalisation, reads theguardian.com.
In 2008, Putin stepped down because the constitution at the time allowed only two four-year terms. He left the Kremlin to become prime minister and personally selected Medvedev as his successor, serving with him since 2000.
Someone with ideas will get rid of Putin very quickly, and Putin doesn’t want to risk that. Medvedev deserves to be counted as a biased figure. He was trying to fit in with the consensus as he tries to fit in now – said Gleb Pavlovsky, an adviser to the Kremlin for more than a decade.
But while Medvedev was clearly Putin’s subordinate, he was a completely different figure from the former KGB man. He talked about his love of rock music and raved about the possibilities of the Internet, actively tweeting and blogging. Putin on the other hand does not know how to use the internet.
Medvedev also lamented the lack of judicial independence in Russia, and made some general statements that he supported real reform.
It was clear that it really was He really liked the liberal part of the country, and that was not just a political strategy; He really wanted to be the president of a normal, civilized country – said Natalia Tsinteva, founder of Russia’s main independent TV channel Dozht Television, which began broadcasting during Medvedev’s presidency and received his support.
Russian liberals are divided over whether Medvedev has a chance to become a real politician with his own agenda. Turns out he’s no better than Putin. But if we do nothing, we will destroy Putin anyway – said senior human rights defender Lyudmila Alekseeva.
Over time, Medvedev also won the ranks of the Kremlin elite, hoping to secure a second term as president in which he would slowly rein in the influence of former KGB hardliners in the government.
Those who know Medvedev say he is attracted to the idea of a second term. He has clashed publicly with Putin at times, most notably when he allowed Medvedev to bypass a UN referendum to intervene in Libya..
He agreed with the idea of creating a new political party, and many around Medvedev, including one of the Kremlin’s most important advisers, Vladislav Surkov, urged him to run for a second term.
Of course, there was great optimism, a sense of political thaw, and the feeling that if he took a second term, we would be more open to the world. Sindiva said.
But when Putin invited Medvedev on a fishing trip in the summer of 2011, he told his supporter that he would return to the presidency. Medvedev humbly accepted it.
As it happened, Medvedev simply couldn’t take the risk. He didn’t deserve it Pawlowski said. As part of the deal, Medvedev asked him to remain prime minister, and apparently hoped he would return to the presidency four years later.
But Putin had other ideas, alienating many of Medvedev’s allies and providing a new Prime Minister”A poisoned chalice for governing the pro-Kremlin party United RussiaTheguardian.com writes that Putin has acted as a lightning rod for criticism while playing the apolitical “nice czar”.
The irony is that after Medvedev did what Putin wanted, Putin stopped trusting him, making Medvedev’s life miserable. Pawlowski said.
In frequent public appearances, Medvedev He already looked broken. At official events, including the opening ceremony of the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, Cameras often caught him sleeping. Navalny’s trial linked Medvedev to a network of palaces and vineyards. He denied the allegations, but there was a wave of street protests from those who believed him Medvedev became as corrupt as the rest of the Russian elite.
Over time, rumors spread in Moscow’s political circles Medvedev’s increasing alcohol consumption. In 2020, Putin ordered him to resign as Prime Minister, but gave him the post of Deputy Chairman of the Security Council.
Of course, there’s a lot going on in his head, but I think so A large part of his current behavior is a sense of personal anger and hatred towards Russian liberalsIn the end who didn’t accept it – A person who knew Medvedeva said.
Within a decade After Medvedev left the presidency, hopes of real liberalization in Russia were dashed. In 2014, Putin decided to annex Crimea, and since then the system has become more authoritarian.
TV station promoted by Medvedev In 2021 it was named “Foreign Agent”, And its online production was effectively banned after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. It recently began broadcasting from outside Russia.
Twitter, once beloved of Medvedev, has been banned in Russia since earlier this year. Now, instead of talking about copying innovative economic ideas from America, Medvedev talks about nuclear war.