=> The toppling of Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, an autocratic leader whose government was plagued by corruption, hits dangerously close to home for Putin. The memory of large-scale demonstrations against the Russian government just over two years ago, and continued allegations of Kremlin corruption by Russian opposition leaders, are doubtless much on the minds of senior Putin advisers as Russia offers refuge to the fallen Ukrainian leader. For the time being, ordinary Russians seem to support the Kremlin’s aggression toward Ukraine. Over 20,000 people in Moscow and 15,000 in St. Petersburg took part in street demonstrations last weekend to express their backing of Russia’s policies. But according to the British daily The Telegraph, the Moscow rally “bore all the hallmarks of attempting to boost numbers by paying protesters and busing in state employees According to a 2012 poll conducted by the Russian Levada Center, most Russians are aware of Putin’s vast wealth and that of the oligarchs who surround him. Although almost 40 percent of those polled voiced their disapproval, at the same time most were resigned to the situation because they felt there was nothing they could do about it. But the example of Ukraine could rouse Russian citizens out of their passivity, especially if the Ukrainian crisis causes the value of the ruble to continue its decline and the Russian economy starts to founder, as many economists are now predicting
Posted on: Wed, 05 Mar 2014 21:00:47 +0000
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