Ehemaliger hochrangiger russischer Beamter gibt zu, dass das Land über Putin hinweg ist und sich „eine Zukunft ohne ihn vorstellen kann“ – sogar Eliten gehen auf Kaution, da der Kreml ihre Vermögenswerte beschlagnahmt

Russians are starting to acknowledge that President Vladimir Putin has led the country to a dead end and can’t shape its future, according to a former senior official in the Kremlin.

In a recent Economist op-ed authored anonymously, the former official pointed out that fellow government peers in Moscow, regional governors and businessmen have stopped using the first person plural when describing Putin’s actions.

In other words, Russia’s elites found a subtle way to no longer express solidarity with Putin, describing what “he” does rather than what “we” do.

That shift took place last spring, but does not signal a rebellion is imminent, the former official added, as the state still controls key levers of repression and fear.

At the same time, the regime has stopped bothering to sell a narrative of national restoration or modernization to the rest of the country, which is losing enormous amounts of blood and treasure in the battlefields of Ukraine.

The irony is that Mr. Putin started the war to preserve power and the system he has created,” the official wrote. “Now, for the first time since the conflict began, Russians are starting to imagine a future without him.” 

The mounting costs of Putin’s war on Ukraine have contributed to the nation’s shift, as Russians grapple with higher inflation, more taxes, crumbling infrastructure, tighter censorship, and myriad new restrictions.

High inflation has also kept interest rates high. As companies and other borrowers struggle to service debt, defaults have climbed and warnings of a financial crisis have multiplied.

Another factor is pushback from Russian elites, who are banned from living abroad and have lost the protection of Western laws that preserved their wealth.

The former official estimated that the state has seized around $60 billion in assets from private businessmen over the past three years, either outright nationalizing their property or redistributing it to cronies.

It is not that the elites have suddenly discovered a taste for the rule of law or democracy,” the op-ed said. “But even those loyal to the regime crave rules and institutions that can resolve conflicts fairly.”

Meanwhile, as the rules-based global order fades, Russia can’t game the system as much by exploiting institutions like the United Nations Security Council. The West’s decline also means Russia is losing its foil, creating an identity crisis.

Finally, Russia’s previous social contract—which let citizens enjoy private lives as long as they stayed out of politics—has collapsed, the former official added.

Instead of providing convenience, services and consumption, the regime only inflicts repression, intrusion and censorship.

“People are required to be loyal without being told what future that loyalty serves,” the official said.

The Kremlin’s internet blackouts have raised howls among ordinary Russians as the regime tries to limit information on economic woes and soaring casualties in Ukraine.

And the country’s disconnection from the regime comes as Putin has removed himself from public life, literally retreating into a bunker.

He spends more time in underground bunkers micromanaging his war, paranoid about a coup or an assassination attempt by Ukrainian drones, sources told the Financial Times.

One person who knows him told the FT that Putin devotes 70% of his day to the war and only 30% to other duties, including the economy.

The quagmire in Ukraine and persistent inflation have weighed on sentiment. Even a survey from Russia’s state-owned pollster showed Putin’s approval rate has fallen to 65.6% from 77.8% at the start of the year and prewar levels well above 80%.

“The system can persist for as long as Mr. Putin remains in power,” the former Russian official wrote in the Economist. “But his every move to preserve and expand it accelerates decay.”

Sure.

the russian bots are late today, wonder if theyre stuck in traffic

Yeah, sure. And: do they really expect us to just return to what was before? Fuck them. They did full heartedly support the genocide on Ukraine.

Fuck you, stay there, YOU are the fascists.

Let’s hope this is how change happens in Russia. To quote Hemingway, ​“Gradually and then suddenly.“

>stopped using the first person plural when describing Putin’s actions

Russian society has some serious attachment and identity issues tied to the personality cult. Even when putin dies, this root problem will stick around

Seems like a nothingburger in response to Mendel’s claims. Of course Putin will leave eventually and the country is preparing for it. The country needs young blood in government, but at this point changing the administration won’t stop the war by itself as many pointed out. Looking at current politburo it very well may be that Putin himself is on the softer side of things and the next one is likely to be a hawk.

I imagine by the time trump is done, he’ll be seizing assets, too.

So much for putin just being a figurehead for the oligarchs eh? There is literally nothing anyone can do when the one with guns rule the country.

History repeating itself…

„As soon as Lenin died (1924), it turned out that the second person in the party, Comrade Trotsky, was a traitor.
Kamenev, Zinoviev, Bukharin and Stalin overthrew Trotsky and expelled him from the USSR (1927). But after a couple of years it turned out that Kamenev, Zinoviev and Bukharin were also enemies and pests.
Then the valiant comrade Heinrich Yagoda arrested them (1936).
A little later, Yezhov arrested Yagoda as an enemy agent (1937). But after a couple of years it turned out that Yezhov was not a comrade, but an ordinary traitor and enemy agent. And Yezhov was arrested by Beria (1938).
After the death of Stalin (1953), everyone realized that Beria was also a traitor. Then Zhukov arrested Beria (1953).
But Khrushchev soon learned that Zhukov was an enemy and a conspirator. And exiled Zhukov to the Urals.
A little later, it was revealed that Stalin was an enemy, a pest and a traitor (1956). And with him, and most of the Politburo.
Then Stalin was taken out of the mausoleum, and the Politburo and Shepilov, who joined them, were dispersed by honest party members led by Khrushchev (1957).
Several years passed and it turned out that Khrushchev was a voluntarist, a rogue, an adventurer and an enemy.
Then Brezhnev sent Khrushchev to retire (1964). After the death of Brezhnev, it turned out that he was a pest and the cause of stagnation (1964-82).
Then there were two more, whom no one even managed to remember (1982-85).
But then the young, energetic Gorbachev came to power. And it turned out that the whole party was a party of wreckers and enemies, but he would fix everything now.
It was then that the USSR collapsed (1991). And Gorbachev turned out to be an enemy and a traitor.“

[Taken from here.](https://www.reddit.com/r/UkrainianConflict/comments/xaq19r/how_does_this_end_realistically_if_russia_is/invlewa?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share&context=3)

Da Noi a Lui al thè caldo è un attimo

Пётр Русский coming soon?

Would love to see an end to this war but it seems unlikely any time soon. Far too many people are dying for little or nothing. And the longer it goes on the more risk it spreads into wider conflict between Russia and Europe.

Yeah, China is looking at this BS, and americas disaster against Iran and leaving Taiwan the hell alone

I guess we should expect this person to fall down a window soon.

Don’t believe it.

> Russians are starting to acknowledge that President Vladimir Putin has led the country to a dead end and can’t shape its future, according to a former senior official in the Kremlin.

Translation: RuZZians are not sorry for the suffering they have inflicted, they are sorry it didn’t bring them advantages

ofc you have to be able to imagine a Future without him

he’s a 74 Year old man

Guards: Boy, this window frame is loose.

Putin: *nervous sweating*

Okay, but when is the change going to happen? Moreover, who’s going to be the replacement?