‘We don’t want this’: Russians react to the Ukraine invasion
People on the streets of Moscow express anger and a sense of hopelessness after Putin’s move
A dark, sombre mood filled the Moscow air on Thursday morning as Russians were coming to terms with the fact that their president had launched a broad military offensive targeting
Ukraine.
“I am embarrassed for my country. To be honest with you, I am speechless. War is always scary. We don’t want this,” said Nikita Golubev, a 30-year old teacher.
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There were already signs that Russians were uncomfortable with Putin’s initial decision to recognise the two self-proclaimed republics in Donbas.
On Tuesday, Yuri Dudt, one of Russia’s most popular media personalities, said he “did not vote for this regime” and its need for an empire and felt ashamed, in a post that received almost a million likes in 24 hours.
A fresh poll by the independent Levada Center
released on Thursday showed that only 45% of Russians stood in favour of the recognition move that preceded Thursday morning’s dramatic events.
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In the end, no major false flag came, and experts now believe that Putin decided to act without gathering the backing of his own electorate.
“Putin seems totally indifferent to approval on the street. He’s acting not like a politician in need of public support, but like a figure from national history books who cares only about the approval of future historians and readers,” tweeted Alexander Baunov, a political analyst at the Carnegie Moscow Center.
The Russian leader looked to have also surprised some of Russia’s most prominent oligarchs, who saw their wealth tumble as the country’s financial markets collapsed.
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But in a country where a single picket protest can land you in jail, and which saw an unprecedented crackdown on the opposition in the last few years, it remains a question to what extent Russians will be able and willing to take to streets to show their opposition to the bloody conflict. A notable police presence was seen at Red Square and Pushkin Square, places known to host protests.
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