Publication author
Valery Kalnysh
Russian President Vladimir Putin is taking the war in Ukraine to a new, old ideological height.
How Russian plans fell apart
“The Russian people, if the West succeeds in destroying Russia and establishing control over its ruins, may not survive. There will be Muscovites, Urals and others,” Putin said in an interview.
Let's start with the fact that it is correct to say “Russian people” and not “Russian”. With this statement, Putin put an end to – or began a new countdown, as you like – in the ideological evolution of the war against Ukraine.
He started with the occupation of Crimea, selling aggression as “the return of historical territories.” Well-fed, spoiled by oil windfalls, the Russians liked the idea of expanding their territory.
This was followed by the stage of “protection of independent peoples.” The defense of the non-existent “peoples of Donbass” was perceived with absolutely indifference by the indifferent population of Russia. Then there was the stage “we will ensure our own security” with these “de-” of his.
This is where the main trend of all actions, starting from 2014, began to appear – as a result of the war with Ukraine, to secure for Russia the status of the leading military-political entity on the continent. Become the new “gendarme of Europe”. But there was a bummer and the “second army of the world” became the first in terms of the number of victims.
Putin prepared the idea of a great war
The failure, and in fact – the loss, required a change in the paradigm of the war. Putin is afraid to retreat and admit defeat, rightly assuming that this recognition will lead to his personal failure:
- minimum – removal from power;
- maximum – physical elimination.
The answer was to raise rates. The Russians have prepared the idea of a new patriotic war. It was actually presented by Putin in an interview. Now his global miscalculation and, as a result, hundreds of thousands of deaths in Ukraine is not a loss in front of a “deliberately weak” country, in their opinion. This is just a stage of Russia's great war against the West.
Now, what is at stake is not the life of some “donbas”, but a threat to the entire Russian state. And for this you can put up with sanctions and victims. Because it's a fight for survival.
“History”, “justice”, “greatness” – having gone through these stages, Russia came to “salvation”. This idea can be supported inside Russia, which will be a temporary salvation for Putin himself. After all, there is nothing more natural for an autocratic state with a Soviet background than to oppose itself to the West.
