Putin offers Russia a path of further existence in the format of regressive simplification, namely the reduction of political freedom, limitation of the citizens’ rights and liberties, and increased power and control by the state, writes Oleksii Danilov, Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine (NSDC), in a column for Ukrainska Pravda.
“On March 17, 2024, Putin entered the phase of phased transition – from the regime of adaptive authoritarianism to the system of repressive conservatism. Having reached the maximum possibilities of power concentration, having received a mandate of imperial-type ‘legitimacy,’ Putin offers Russia a path of further existence in the format of regressive simplification. Such an approach in itself becomes a threat to the existence of the Russian state system, which inevitably leads to the activation of the self-destruction process or the localization of the threat,” Danilov writes.
The virus of Putinism has begun to rapidly multiply and spread, raising the body temperature to critical levels, the text states. Further, Russia awaits an increase in repression, gradual replacement and removal of old cadres from management levers, nationalization and redistribution, strengthening of ideology, economic overheating, increased digital control, as well as the formation of a full-fledged dictatorship of a forceful type with the omnipotence of security services, predicts the NDSC Secretary.
“Any opportunities for protests or disagreement with the regime must be destroyed. The scale of repression will be significantly expanded. The punitive machine will operate according to internal logic, which will require the involvement of an increasing number of people, regions, and spheres – from political to everyday. The phrase ‘enemy of the people’ is next in line for law enforcement,” Danilov writes.
Putin will form a “breakthrough team” that will allow the achievement of the set goals and will consist of “hungry and aggressive” individuals, not “satiated and rich.” “It may include conditional ‘young technocrats’ as well as so-called ‘heroes of the special military operation,'” continues the NDSC Secretary.
Gradually, Russia will return to Stalinist practices. “In conditions of constant economic downturn and Putin’s declared ‘unfair privatization of the 90s’ under the scrutiny of power falls big business, which risks being thoroughly dismantled, including people from Putin’s inner circle. The logic of repression since the times of “Trotsky’s, Zinoviev’s, and Bukharins’ pests” [refers to individuals considered nuisances or threats by these leaders within the early Soviet Union, often targeted for persecution or elimination – ed.] has changed little,” the column states.
The fascistization and Sovietization of modern Russia have gained a marching pace, which is hard to change. “In essence, we have a situation that should demonstrate strength but demonstrates weakness. Killing opponents, resorting to repression, crushing the media, isolating from the world, and rattling nuclear scrap metal is not the actions of a strong player, but only of one who is afraid, terribly afraid, when he feels that there is nothing ahead…” summarizes Danilov.
Read the full text here.
Cover: Sergei Supinsky / AFP via Getty Images
