“Election” in Russia: Putin’s absurd show

Good morning, dear readers, German political decision-makers are turning their attention to the East. Yesterday our reporter Daniel Mützel’s exclusive research made waves; He reported on a secret meeting of the Defense Committee in the Bundestag: Accordingly, the reason for the Chancellor’s rejection of the Taurus delivery to Ukraine could be the cruise missile’s complicated firing technology. This weekend the focus is on Russia, where Putin is staging his election spectacle: superiors in companies, authorities and universities force their subordinates to go to the polls; Claqueurs from all over the country are carted to election parties in Moscow. The fact that the Kremlin needs such a simulation of democracy to legitimize its power gives an idea of ​​how unstable the regime actually is. A single man at the top, supported by a clique of mafia apparatchiks. Patrushev, Kovalchuk, Kiriyenko, plus a network of loyal oligarchs: This is the system that controls 143 million Russians, terrorizes Ukraine and threatens Central Europe. From the outside, this system appears rock solid – but the impression may be deceiving. The economy is suffering from Western sanctions. The Russian army has lost a large proportion of its tanks and fighter jets; It is being hastily reproduced, but in inferior quality. The costly war has become unpopular among the population. Valves are needed to let the pressure of the growing discontent out of the boiler. Can the “presidential election” be such an outlet? Is Putin still sitting on his throne unchallenged or is his power beginning to crumble? How do Russians really view the current situation, the war, the West, the Tsar? There is no one in our editorial team who can take such an experienced and at the same time original look at Russia and its development as Wladimir Kaminer. Our columnist grew up in the Soviet Union, has lived in Berlin for many years and maintains close contacts with Russia. The ideal guest for our podcast, in which Lisa Fritsch and I discuss with Wladimir. I would be happy if you listened here. Subscribe on Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Transcript Now I wish you a relaxing weekend, hopefully with some sunshine. The next dawns come from my dear colleagues. Kind regards, Florian Harms Editor-in-Chief t-online E-Mail: t-online-newsletter@stroeer.de Would you like to subscribe to the free daily Tagesanbruch newsletter or recommend it to others? You can do this with three clicks here.