This is what the Russian historian and opposition politician Vladimir Kara-Murza says to the independent Russian media Medusa.
Read all about the war in Ukraine
Kara-Murza was sentenced earlier this year to 25 years in prison. Among the charges is that he allegedly brought the Russian army into disrepute. He is serving his sentence in a Russian high-security prison. Meduza has nevertheless managed to get an interview with the high-profile Vladimir Putin critic.
– It is dark
He is merciless against the regime which he believes has destroyed the Russian state in a short time.
– When someone who has been in power for a quarter of a century thinks that it is not enough. And when this country wages an unprovoked war against a neighboring country, bombs the cities, kills the inhabitants and conquers the territories. Yes, then it’s dark, notes Vladimir Kara-Murza.
He describes the Putin era as a continuous dismantling of the country, including the destruction of all institutions, such as parliament and courts. He believes the biggest political blunder was committed when Russian leaders failed to deal with and punish those responsible during the dark years of the Soviet Union. Now he is warning the Russians against making the same mistake on the day the Putin regime ends.
The article continues below the advertisementThe article continues below the advertisement
– If evil is not understood, condemned and punished, it will definitely return, and that is exactly what we have seen in Russia after 2000, summarizes Vladimir Kara-Murza.
Watch video: Putin put out by “double gang”
The article continues below the advertisementThe article continues below the advertisement
– We must not miss the historic chance
Despite all the oppression, brutality and the dictatorial way of governing the huge country, the historian sees hope for a change, and he believes it can come sooner than people think.
Kara-Murza compares the Putin era to the dark years at the end of Nicholas the First’s reign, and Stalin’s last years of extensive state terror and extreme abuses against his own population.
– I believe that changes in our country are much closer than it seems, and it is important to prepare for them now so as not to miss the historic chance.
– A semi-totalitarian country with extreme control
Danish TV 2 has spoken to senior researcher at the Danish Institute for International Studies, Flemming Splidsboel. Like Kara-Murza, he believes that something big could be brewing.
The article continues below the ad
– Russia has gone from being a more traditional authoritarian to a semi-totalitarian country with extreme control. A place where you have to express your support publicly, and where being passive is not enough. Everyone will be required to support, says Splidsboel, who asks the world to be prepared that something may happen, but that it does not necessarily happen as quickly as the West had hoped for.
2024-01-02 07:13:16
#world #prepare #Putins #fall
