Kathrine Frich
When a nation gets dragged into a long conflict, people naturally look for an exit.
Whispered rumors of secret rebellions make for great stories.
But the reality hiding behind those closed doors is usually far more complicated and much darker.
Hostages to the system
Western observers frequently search for cracks inside the Kremlin walls. They desperately hope to see the wealthy elite turn against their leader.
A prominent economist just threw cold water on those highly optimistic theories. Igor Lipsits recently sat down for a YouTube interview to discuss the inner workings of Moscow.
He stated that he views rumors of an impending coup with extreme skepticism. Dialog.ua reported his comments regarding the Russian power brokers.
Lipsits noted that the public survives on tiny fragments of information that simply cannot support any serious political analysis.
Creating fake instability
The analyst argued that since there is no visible opposition, these wild stories are likely deliberate leaks designed to create panic.
According to the Latvian news outlet LA.LV, the ruling class is actually too tightly bound to break apart now.
“They are all very closely related by blood, so it is difficult to imagine that there could be any kind of split there. The main thing is that they all understand one simple thing: ending the war is an even greater disaster for Russia than continuing the war,” Lipsits explained.
The real disaster
The ongoing battle provides a highly convenient excuse for the catastrophe facing the country. A sudden peace would force the public to ask brutal questions.
Top officials know that pointing fingers after a ceasefire could prove completely fatal.
“Why did the problems arise, what to do with them, who is to blame for it? These are unpleasant questions, and I think that the Russian top leadership understands that no one knows who will survive and who will suffer in the settling of accounts that will begin after the end of the war,” he stressed.
Waiting it out
The brutal reality is that calling off the invasion puts their massive fortunes at serious risk.
“Not only property, but also one’s head can be lost, so they will hold on as long as Putin is alive, just like it was with Stalin,” the economist added.
He ended the interview with a chilling historical comparison about surviving under a dictator.
“All the people’s commissars hated Stalin, but everyone was afraid of him to death. Until he himself fell, no one dared to do anything.”
Sources: LA.LV, Dialog.ua, YouTube
