There is talk of “terror” in Russia – which warns the audience: Vladimir Putin has built power and repression before.
FRANKFURT – War blogger Wladlen Tatarski was killed in a bomb attack in the center of St. Petersburg on Sunday (April 2). It is highly conceivable that further shocks and stress waves will follow – in Russian society. Because the Kremlin blames, among other things, the opposition surrounding the jailed Alexei Navalny. Vladimir Putin’s presidency has a long tradition of political or actual terrorism. According to critics, it is also a cornerstone of his power.
Tatarsky case: Medvedev fumes – what’s on the Kremlin’s mind?
In this regard, the comments made people sit up and take notice in the days following the attack. “Terror is back on our streets, in our cities,” Dmitry Medvedev announced on Telegram. A former confidant of more liberal powers in Russia has drawn attention to the war in Ukraine, above all the one who sent the most serious threats. This time too he opened fire on the opposition parties and the West. The “non-organised resistance” supported by the West is at war against its own people. They will be “destroyed”.
The West has long been used to crude comparisons with animals and harsh declarations from Medvedev’s lips. Still unanswered questions: Are hardliners hinting at a new escalation in the country’s crackdown on critics? Or new arguments for an attack on the West?
Putin’s Rise to Power: Chechnya, Terrorism, Authoritarian Restoration
Putin’s use of internal threats to combat his opponents is nothing new. The Kremlin leader has also engaged in military action on this basis. The key word is “Chechnya”. The Kremlin blamed the 1999 explosions in Moscow on Chechen terrorists. As a result, Putin rode a “patriotic wave” to “invincible popularity.” Time Analyzed in 2007. As Navalny confidant Leonid Volkov points out in his book “Putinland,” Putin likes to stick to once-successful strategies. The war in Ukraine, an extended new version of the annexation of Crimea, may have followed the pattern of strengthening domestic politics – though not with the planned outcome.
However, Putin’s rise, but growing repression, is closely linked to the topic of “terrorism” and Chechnya. In 1999, Putin was still prime minister and went to bloody war in the breakaway republic under this slogan. The following year he was elected president and took action against the unpopular media in Russia. There was skepticism at home and abroad about the results of the investigation into the fatal apartment building explosions. They were never released: the government suppressed further investigations; Members of a parliamentary inquiry committee, including liberal Sergei Yushenkov, lost their lives.
After September 11, 2001, Putin intensified his “terrorist” rhetoric, as noted in the 2004 OSCE Yearbook. At the time, Putin still expressed solidarity with the United States but warned against Islamic fundamentalism. Meanwhile, his current governor, Ramzan Kadyrov and Kremlin propagandist, may call for “jihad.”
Putin and terrorism: the “excuse” for cuts – and question marks around the FSB
Another setback for civil rights in Russia dates back to 2004. After the school occupation and bloody hostage crisis in Beslan, North Ossetia, in which more than 330 people died, Putin curtailed the rights of Russian regions and even canceled gubernatorial elections — and, according to Volkov, Putin needed some excuse. , he declared that without further ado the governors should be used centrally, one can ensure greater stability in the country,” he writes. Like Volko, former oligarch Mikhail Khodorkovsky sees the “reforms” of the time as an important step toward Putin’s undivided power in the country. Putin also changed the Duma election law to “terrorism”.
There were also question marks in the Beslan case: according to the European Court of Human Rights, it was unclear whether the victims were shot by hostages or by security forces. In 2002, a similar hostage disaster occurred at the Dubrovka theater in Moscow, where at least 170 people died, partly because forces of the secret service FSB used anesthetic gas. Putin gains in polls However, speculations of FSB involvement as early as 1999 have also remained unconfirmed to date. This time too there are similar unverified allegations.
Who killed Tatarsky? Putin’s security services may be under pressure – and looking for “political advantages”.
Observers expect at least more stringent restrictions on civil society. “This incident makes it clear that the authorities will do everything to increase repression,” said opposition leader Maxim Resnik. US Eastern Europe Channel Radio Liberty. However, he did not see the massacre as a purposefully targeted operation.
Russian exile political analyst Fyodor Kraschennikov assessed the situation there in a similar way. He finds Russian security services under pressure after failing to stop an attack in the middle of Putin’s hometown. But it did not rule out attempts to gain “political advantage”. Krasheninnikov’s concern: Moscow can now arrest unwanted people as “terrorists” — even those with the slightest connection to Alexei Navalny. “Of course, that worries me a lot,” emphasized the expert. The Kremlin accused Daria Trebova of having ties to Navalny and charged her with “terrorism”.
Stalin as model for Putin’s next steps: Exiled analysts expect “retaliations” in Russia
Coincidentally, Krasheninnikov finds a parallel in a more recent case: in 1934, Politburo member Sergei Kirov was also killed in St. Petersburg. The motive is unclear, but dictator Joseph Stalin used the case to justify further repression in the Soviet Union. Putin’s passion for Russian and Soviet history is known. “Politically, this could lead to further retaliation against civil society and increased pressure on Ukraine,” said Andrey Kolesnikov, a professional colleague of Krasheninnikov. Radio Liberty– Media.
Meanwhile, calls for tougher reactions quickly fell on fertile ground among war bloggers and hardliners. However, the Tatarsky case may also reveal risks for Putin: the attack on journalist Ewan Macdonald ” It shows how much Putin’s power has been weakened by his devastating war“. (fn)
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