Maxim Trudolyubov

The Kremlin’s intensifying confrontation with the West has already put the Russian economy under severe strain. But the Russian population seems to accept falling incomes and general uncertainty as the price of what its leaders portray as a national resurgence. Encouraged by the jingoistic state-run media, Russian society seems to applaud war policies that would subject a Western leader to fierce inquiries or removal from office by a disapproving electorate (the British prime minister Tony Blair’s fate after his acquiescence in the American-led Iraq war is one example).

Arguably, Russia is the only major power that no longer hesitates to shatter longstanding relationships with others.…  Seguir leyendo »

At a recent awards ceremony at the Kremlin for scientists, artists and public intellectuals, President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia couldn’t help but recount his country’s achievements. But he also offered a word of caution. "We still have a lot of unsolved problems and questions," he said. "It is certainly no time for us to be ‘dizzy with success."

Don’t be deceived by such expressions of humility. Many Russians view Mr. Putin as highly successful — and the president himself very much agrees. His approval rating has reached levels upward of 80 percent for nearly two years, and few, certainly none at a Kremlin event, are making a public case for redefining or even amending the notion of what constitutes a Moscow leader’s success.…  Seguir leyendo »

Almost anything Vladimir Putin touches these days is perceived by the West as a weapon, and almost everything he does is seen as an attack, very often a successful one. The Kremlin can change facts on the ground, stage quasi cease-fires and create zones of influence to exert pressure on other nations. It has done so in Moldova, Georgia and Ukraine, and the pattern is now being repeated in Syria.

Meanwhile, the West goes on declaring one Kremlin success after another in ways that many Russians themselves cannot see. Under an editorial headline “Putin’s Syria Victory,” for example, The Wall Street Journal opined on Feb.…  Seguir leyendo »

Much has changed for Vladimir Putin since the terror attacks in Paris. The trope that aggressions in Crimea and Ukraine show that he is more of a threat to the West than ISIS was useful to President Obama’s critics, but that’s now older than yesterday’s news. Given the joint French-Russian airstrikes against ISIS in Syria last week, Russia is now a de facto Western ally. Putin the pariah has a shot at redemption, or so it might seem.

Just weeks ago, François Hollande declared that the Russian leader was “not our ally in Syria,” and warned — albeit obliquely — that Mr.…  Seguir leyendo »

When your country launches a surprise air campaign in some faraway place, you might naturally ask questions about the goals, the costs and the consequences. But this, evidently, is not the Russian way. Ever since the Kremlin began its bombing campaign in Syria, I’ve been asking people here what they think about our foray into the war-torn mess of the Middle East, to little or no avail. The subject does come up, but not in the way you might think.

Apparently for most Russians, discussing the wisdom of plunging into a sectarian conflict hundreds of miles away is not nearly as exciting as simply watching televised images of warships firing cruise missiles into the darkness.…  Seguir leyendo »

Whenever Russians think about Iran, soul-searching ensues. Some look at the Iranian system favorably, and some despise it, but in the aftermath of the recent deal to limit Iranian nuclear production in exchange for a lifting of economic sanctions and increased commercial contacts with the outside world, many Russians, worried by their country’s growing status as an international pariah, have begun to ask themselves: “Are we the new Iran?”

This may sound strange to foreign ears, but it is not really so far-fetched. Many Russians, both inside and outside the Kremlin, admire the Iranian way of dealing with a hostile world.…  Seguir leyendo »

There is a widespread view in the West that Russia’s aggressive actions in Ukraine and confrontational policies toward the United States and Europe are an attempt to revitalize aspects of its lost Soviet glory days. But if we look at some of the Kremlin’s domestic policy initiatives, we see a country struggling to become less “Soviet” in its actions and reform its decrepit institutions before it’s too late.

Many of the reforms now underway reflect Moscow’s long-overdue recognition that the Russian state simply cannot afford to maintain costly Soviet-designed structures, such as free higher education for all students or an oversized military based on mass mobilization.…  Seguir leyendo »

Russia’s Victory Day, celebrated on May 9th, has for decades been its most unifying event of the year domestically and its least controversial holiday internationally. But because of the peculiarities of the Kremlin’s politics of history, Moscow’s annexation of Crimea and the ongoing struggle over Ukraine, even the celebration of the 70th anniversary of the end of the Great Patriotic War has become divisive.

Heads of state the world over have been invited to the military parade in Moscow to mark the defeat of Hitler’s Germany. According to the Russian foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, leaders from China, Israel, the Czech republic, Serbia, North Korea and most former Soviet republics are planning to attend.…  Seguir leyendo »

How did Vladimir Putin, the president who promised Russians stability when he first came to power in 2000, become today’s high-stakes gambler, presiding over an economy in crisis and the war in Ukraine? Why do his priorities now center on his political survival, even as the price he is making ordinary Russians pay for it grows out of all proportion?

To understand how Mr. Putin evolved one must look back to the traumas that shook Russia in the 1990s, and how his predecessor dealt with them. When Boris Yeltsin became the country’s first democratically elected president in 1991 he surrounded himself with intellectuals — political and social scientists, market economists and journalists.…  Seguir leyendo »

In Russia, where religious holidays have not supplanted secular ones, New Year’s Eve is much more important than Christmas. The fact that the country’s biggest holiday marks the turn of the calendar illustrates the special relationship Russians — and particularly their rulers — have with time.

Historically, many Russian leaders have fallen into two broad categories: those who tried to freeze time (Czar Nicholas I and Leonid Brezhnev, for example), and those who wanted to speed it up (Peter the Great, Alexander II, Nikita Khrushchev). The former group worshiped tradition, the latter emphasized change. In any case, attempts to turn back the clock have always alternated with outbursts of frenetic activity.…  Seguir leyendo »

There was a time when we Russians thought of our country as one of those burgeoning, dynamic places, a land of diamonds in the rough. But today Russia is no longer an emerging nation. Instead, it’s hiding its face from the world.

As a result of the Kremlin’s own actions, and Western countermeasures, Russia may gradually find itself cut off from many of its international links, “unplugged” from capital markets, global news media, foreign expertise, and even the World Wide Web. To stay on top of Russia’s power pyramid, President Vladimir V. Putin and his minions feel they must corral and tame the Internet.…  Seguir leyendo »

Vladimir Yevtushenkov, an oligarch under house arrest in Moscow since mid-September on charges of money laundering, may or may not be guilty of any wrongdoing. But he is different from many of his ilk in one important way: He is one of the rare moguls who lives and pays taxes in Russia but directly owns a major stake in his London-listed company Sistema. The vast majority of his peers operate through chains of shell-companies that lead to obscure off-shore havens.

Yevtushenkov had been thought to enjoy special protection. But the fate of the once-powerful billionaire, No. 15 on the Forbes list of Russia’s richest men, has clearly changed.…  Seguir leyendo »