Putin's path to perpetual power: Implications for Russia's future
Vladimir Putin will be announced the president of the Russian Federation again in just a few dozen hours, and for the next few years, he will be able to do whatever he desires in the country. It seems that the 71-year-old dictator will firmly cement power in Russia and will rule the country until his death. What else awaits his compatriots?
Vladimir Putin has been ruling Russia since 1999, when Boris Yeltsin quite unexpectedly handed power to him. Since then, he has been the president of the country. And when he was prime minister for a short period, power still centred around him. Today, there is no doubt that he will easily win the three-day elections, and everyone is wondering how many votes he will get.
According to Anton Herashchenko, a Ukrainian international relations analyst, a specialist on Russia and a former advisor to the Minister of Internal Affairs in Kyiv, Russia faces a bleak scenario after Vladimir Putin's victory. He will be able to cement his power and probably lead the country until his death. His role will also change.
Democracy? Russians can only dream about it. The same as now.
Vladimir Putin's triumph will give him the mandate to further change Russia according to his plan and to use his essentially unlimited power. It has been known for some time that the dictator from the Kremlin admires the Soviet Union and dreams of rebuilding its might. He will start with his own country and domestic politics.
Anton Herashchenko believes that probably the last elections of Vladimir Putin are taking place. After that, the dictator will extend his rule and will demand lifelong power in Russia. Who will resist him? No one has the power, so the next presidential elections will probably be cancelled. Or they will be a farce, as now.
The triumph of Putin in the elections. What will happen to Russia?
It cannot be ruled out that a special status of Vladimir Putin as a "leader of the nation" will be announced - thinks the specialist and analyst of the situation in Russia.
Political and opposition activities in Russia will be marginalized and limited, because Putin relies on fear and obedience of the people. Any attempts at resistance will be brutally suppressed, and the repressive apparatus is already being expanded. The secret services will gain new possibilities for control and infiltration of society, and war veterans will perfectly fit in their ranks.
Free media and internet? Forget it. Control, censorship, and an aggressive domestic policy. Add to that conscription – because Putin's Russia does not intend to give up aggression against its neighbours – and harsh prisons for any form of resistance. Plus, penal colonies, camps, and gulags, straight from the USSR era. Russia will again be a closed country.
Ideas for reviving the gulags are already being discussed on television and the choice of new camp locations is underway - wrote Anton Herashchenko.
Additionally, Russians await the expansion of the cult of Vladimir Putin, also in the Soviet style. The leader will be everywhere with the common citizen: portraits on the streets and buildings, studying his speeches in schools and universities, and mandatory quotes in the press. A new and "better" Russia, or rather the darkest possible scenario.
Voting in Russia starts on Friday and also takes place in the occupied territories. There are four candidates. But it has been known for a long time that this vote was meant to be won by Vladimir Putin and that his people would do everything to make it so. He is to win by a landslide. Elections in Russia will last from March 15-17, adjusted to Greenwich Mean Time.
