Putin offered up the vague goals of “demilitarization” and “denazification” for what he called a “special military operation,” but it wasn’t entirely clear to many Russians why Russian tanks were suddenly rolling through Ukraine-and by extension, why Moscow was taking on the risks and costs of war.Īfter a year of war in Ukraine, however, it is now clear that instead of disrupting the existing social contract, Putin’s war has only extended it. International companies and brands left, flight connections to the outside world were canceled, and the ruble crashed to its lowest value in history. Within days of the invasion, Russia found itself more isolated than it had been in decades, facing Western sanctions that threatened to devastate its economy. Russian society was demobilized by design.īut after Russian forces invaded Ukraine, and particularly after they encountered stiffer than expected resistance, it seemed possible that the shock of war would overturn this dynamic. This arrangement suited both citizen and state just fine. Even as the space for independent political and civic action shrank to near zero and real living standards declined, most Russians saw little reason to participate in collective action: such efforts were far more likely to result in a police baton upside the head or a lengthy prison term than in actual change. From its outset, the system built by Russian President Vladimir Putin was based on the idea of a disengaged public, with matters of political and civic concern left to those on high. This article is part of a series e xamining what a year of war in Ukraine has revealed.īefore Russia went to war in Ukraine, it was no great mystery that Russian society was adaptable, better at playing along and avoiding responsibility than actively protesting.
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