Advisor to Ukraine's President's Office comments on Navalny party and Russian opposition
Advisor to the Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, Mykhailo Podolyak (photo: president.gov.ua)
Besides Russian dissidents and migrants who have clearly expressed their anti-war stance, other parties in Russia have not outlined their position, including the liberal alliance of Navalny. Today, there is no prospect for the Russian opposition to seize power in Russia, states Advisor to the Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, Mykhailo Podolyak.
"There is no Russian opposition, there is a Russian dissident movement that does not influence anything and does not seek to. It must be understood that Russians are not ready to figure out how to build infrastructure that will lead to the overthrow of Putin's authoritarian regime," the official said.
He noted that the only prospect is the Ukrainian armed forces, which are inflicting tactical defeats, as a result of which the myth of the greatness of the Russian Federation is dispelled, and processes that are not at all revolutionary begin. Whether Yulia Navalnaya will take part in them is unknown. She has not yet expressed a clear position on Russia's war against Ukraine and the mass killings of Ukrainian citizens.
Right now, Ukraine is fighting Putin on the battlefield, while the Russian opposition is the dissident social networks, discussing how to legalize the elections on March 17 in Russia.
"For me, this looks extremely strange and incomparable. However, there are examples of effective work by Russian opposition movements. This is the Freedom of Russia Legion and the RVC (Russian Volunteer Corps). They clearly state that only weapons will help solve the issue of the existence of Putin's vertical, everything else is fiction," the advisor added.
According to Podolyak, there will be no internal pressure in Russia despite Navalny's death: "No one will take to the streets and speak out about the nullified political competition, criminal offenses, murders of opponents in prisons, because Russians are not ready for a tough confrontation, which means they are interested in humanitarian pressure on Putin."
Earlier, Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich took part in negotiations on the exchange of prisoners between Russia, the US, and Europe. According to CNN's source, the negotiation process lasted for two years but has been accelerating in recent months.
In addition, former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was involved in the negotiations. The oligarch also met with an official representative of the US. As part of the exchange, seven people were supposed to be exchanged.
By the way, the EU may impose new sanctions against Russia over Navalny's death. According to the draft, restrictions will affect 35 individuals and two legal entities. Among them are several prison and government officials, judges, as well as corrective colonies IK-3 and IK-6.
