Another Russian mercenary leader has turned against Putin
A little over a year ago, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Putin’s former cook and the founder of the notorious Wagner private military company, launched a coup attempt that fizzled quickly. But, significantly, the Russian military and security services did nothing to stop it. They just watched — hardly a sign of their loyalty to Putin.
A few days ago, Georgy Zakrevsky, another head of a private military company, effectively called on Russians to get rid of the “Great” Putin (his modifier, not mine). When the guys with the guns start making fun of your greatness, it may be time to read the writing on the wall.
The 53-year-old Zakrevsky is no liberal and no good guy. He served in the KGB and Soviet army, earned a law degree and got “involved with secret activity, information about which is forbidden.” He then moved on to “independent military consulting” and founded the mercenary outfit Paladin.
Paladin is scary. Its own website describes the group as follows: “A few years ago no one knew of the private military company. Now the whole world knows. Let the dilettantes think we’re killers; their views don’t interest us. People don’t turn to us to defend their pharmacies; they don’t ask for permission to use arms. We don’t need to prove anything.”
The company has seen action in Congo, Lebanon and Ecuador; and it currently protects three “strategic objects” and has over 250 mercenaries.
Given Zakrevsky’s past record and current credentials, the last thing one would expect such a cutthroat to do would be to turn against Russia’s cutthroat par excellence, the Great Putin. The pair should be, and presumably once were, natural allies. For someone like Zakrevsky to criticize Putin publicly is thus no small potatoes.
Zakrevsky must be mad as hell and, more important, he must know that he’s not the only Russian military man who agrees. And why shouldn’t their veins be throbbing? The Great Putin has come close to destroying Mother Russia.
Here’s Zakrevsky’s diatribe against Putin, in my translation:
“Our country is not just on the brink of disaster or already right next to it; our country is already in trouble. In big trouble. Drones are flying all over central Russia, right up to Moscow and St. Petersburg. They even attacked the Kremlin. Our Black Sea fleet is being pushed out. It’s being pushed out as if we were not a great power with a great fleet, but some third-rate country.
“Our air force is practically not working because it is also being pushed out. We are standing in the same positions that we took more than two years ago, and partly in those to which we retreated. The population is dying out, becoming impoverished, drinking itself to death: no one cares. All they have time to do is bring in migrants.”
Zakrevsky minces no words in assigning blame for this sad state of affairs: “And all this was done by the so-called ‘president.’ The ‘Great’ Putin.”
After accusing army officers of incompetence and worse, Zakrevsky concludes his screed with an appeal "to those who are in the trenches. You know very well what kind of indecency is happening there now....You know very well the faces that are mocking you and your relatives.... We call on everyone to join our union to save our country. The point of no return has already been passed.”
Note that Zakrevsky doesn’t say “I call on you,” but “we call on you.” The plural is presumably a reference to “our union,” Paladin, but it may also be a reference to other military men, whether in the private mercenary companies or the regular armed forces.
Also worth emphasizing is the target audience: the soldiers serving and dying in miserable conditions on the Ukrainian front. Zakrevsky must know that military desertions in 1916 and 1917 led directly to the downfall of the czar and to the Bolsheviks taking power.
Zakrevsky’s outburst was obviously prompted by Ukraine’s incursion into Kursk Province and the shameful incompetence of the Russian army, the intelligence services and their leaders. And Zakrevsky is absolutely correct to realize that the buck stops with Putin. Having made himself the “great” leader, Putin bears responsibility for all that transpires inside Russia. That’s the price of being the dictator — you can’t pass the ruble.
Zakrevsky’s appeal, which has supposedly been distributed widely among Russia’s military and civilian elites, can’t be dismissed as the unrepresentative grumbling of a disgruntled mercenary. Zakrevsky, like Prigozhin before him, represents Russia’s military class. If he’s unhappy and willing to risk his career — and possibly his life — by going public with his call for Putin’s removal, there must be many others who share his discontent. That may be why he hasn’t been arrested or killed — yet.
Were Zakrevsky to somehow come to power, his political leanings would likely be identical to Putin’s: imperialism, fascism and war and genocide in Ukraine. But Zakrevsky is no Putin, and whatever the former’s political aspirations, he could never have the power and authority of Putin.
Zakrevsky is important, not because he portends a nicer, gentler Russia, but because he portends chaos among Russia’s ruling elites. And chaos means less interest by Moscow in Ukraine and other neighboring states, growing instability at home and the possibility — however small — of a turn away from fascism.
That may not sound like much, but, given the horror of Putin’s regime, it would be remarkable.
Alexander J. Motyl is a professor of political science at Rutgers University-Newark. A specialist on Ukraine, Russia and the USSR, and on nationalism, revolutions, empires and theory, he is the author of 10 books of nonfiction, as well as “Imperial Ends: The Decay, Collapse, and Revival of Empires” and “Why Empires Reemerge: Imperial Collapse and Imperial Revival in Comparative Perspective.”
Date: | |
Tag: | Russia |
-
Financial Times - Business
America has an innovation and incumbency problem
Politicians should be taking questions of R&D and corporate power much more seriously1 hour ago -
BBC News - Top stories
Scarratt to make 100th England start against NZ
Centre Emily Scarratt will start her 100th game for England on Saturday against New Zealand in the first fixture at the newly-named Allianz Stadium.1 hour ago -
The Hill - Politics
Biden outlines 'personal' fight against domestic violence
Three decades after passing the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), President Biden plans to commemorate its signing at the White House on Thursday and announce actions that the Biden-Harris ...1 hour ago - Joe Biden -
NBC News - Top stories
Venezuelan opposition leader Machado tells Sen. Cardin the fight against Maduro will go on
Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado told Sen. Ben Cardin that U.S. support is a “moral reference” for those protesting the government of President Nicolás Maduro.1 hour ago -
ABC News - World
UAE arrests and turns over suspected child sexual exploiter to the Philippines, officials say
A Filipino man suspected of victimizing more than 100 children in the Philippines with his gang by selling their nude pictures online, including some while being raped by his cohorts, has been ...2 hours ago -
ESPN - Sports
Are Heidenheim for real? Dortmund will test the Bundesliga leaders
In an early-season surprise, Heidenheim sit on top of the Bundesliga table, but Friday's visit to Dortmund will reveal much about the league leaders.2 hours ago -
The New York Times - World
Ukraine Says Russian Missile Hit Grain Ship in Black Sea
If confirmed, the attack would be the first on a commercial vessel since Ukraine secured a shipping route to grain markets abroad last year.2 hours ago - Ukraine -
CBS Sports - Sports
How Blue Jays standout Bowden Francis saved his season and turned into a perpetual no-hit threat
Twice in his last four starts, Francis has taken a no-hitter into the ninth inning2 hours ago -
MarketWatch - Business
Oil turns higher for the week after hurricane Francine landfall
Oil futures headed higher for a second straight session on Thursday, turning higher for the week as investors assessed Hurricane Francine’s impact on U.S. oil and gas production and refinery ...2 hours ago -
Yahoo News - World
Zelensky says three killed in Russian attack on Red Cross vehicles
3 hours ago - Russia
More from The Hill
-
The Hill - Politics
Dangerous disinformation: Pregnancy should never be political
It is time that put politics aside and prioritize women and their well-being.21 minutes ago -
The Hill - Politics
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul reveals skin cancer diagnosis
The governor of New York has basal cell carcinoma, a common type of skin cancer. Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) announced her diagnosis to reporters Thursday following a public safety press conference in ...22 minutes ago - New York -
The Hill - Politics
Ben & Jerry's co-founders unveil Kamala Harris ice cream flavor
Ben & Jerry’s co-founders, Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, are unveiling a new ice cream flavor, "Kamala’s Coconut Jubilee,” as part of a get-out-the-vote initiative to elect Vice President Harris ...37 minutes ago - Kamala Harris -
The Hill - Politics
Linda Ronstadt slams Trump for 'hate show' campaign rally at venue bearing her name
Linda Ronstadt is slamming former President Trump for bringing "his hate show" to an Arizona venue bearing her name. "Donald Trump is holding a rally on Thursday in a rented hall in my hometown, ...41 minutes ago - Donald Trump -
The Hill - Politics
Embattled NYPD commissioner resigns
New York Police Commissioner Edward Caban has resigned, Mayor Eric Adams (D) said Thursday at a press conference, nearly a week after the FBI seized Caban's devices in a federal investigation. ...41 minutes ago