Russia’s political/pandemic update: “Rescuing drowning people is the work of the drowning people themselves”
Politically, October In Russia appeared a quieter month than the previous ones as the Navalny saga suddenly evaporated from the geopolitical scene, no fresh comments on the Nord Stream 2 came from either side, i.e., its adversaries or proponents, there was no major news from the Belarusian protests and no speculation on Russia’s meddling in the US election campaign. Compared to the previous months, Russia was left alone. Meanwhile, the Russian authorities became less outspoken on various geopolitical issues, as well.
As the area of mutual political cooperation between Russia and the West has shrunk to a tiny, almost non-existent area, to have de facto almost no relations is better than to have bad relations. This may not be the worst option for the country, as it may eventually shift Russia’s internal policy debate from geopolitical issues toward more pragmatic economic issues, as not only the ruling elite alone, but also the general public is seemingly losing interest in foreign matters and choosing to stay away from the geopolitical pandemic.
Russians will increasingly rely on the fundamental life-affirming principle that “rescuing drowning people is the work of the drowning people themselves” – be it about their own or their country’s matters. This principle was fleshed out in one of the most popular satirical pieces of Russian literature, written almost a century ago.
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