Kathrine Frich
The expert painted a picture of a government that chose to swallow the criminal world.
When a national leader faces a powerful criminal underworld, the usual response involves massive police crackdowns and strict new laws.
Some rulers choose a completely different path entirely.
They look at the existing network of violence and decide to take it over.
A shift in power
A shift swept through Russian society shortly after Vladimir Putin took office. The new president promised to streamline the country’s broken legal system. He moved fast.
Journalist Zbigniew Parafianowicz recently broke down this exact process on a Polish Army television program called “History.” He explained how the Kremlin completely rewired the national criminal landscape.
According to a WP Wiadomości report, the host asked the expert a pointed question. Did the Russian leader actually want to eliminate street crime, or did he just want to control it?
The state takes over
The expert painted a clear picture of a government that chose to swallow the criminal world whole. The massive strategy relied heavily on state intelligence agencies.
Parafianowicz noted that the administration essentially wanted to nationalize the entire world of violence. This meant handing control directly to loyal agents.
“Definitely nationalize it. Meaning, centralize power in the hands of the appropriate group that runs the state. That is, a group of people from the secret services who have their own ‘stukos’, or rather, informants and informants,” the journalist replied.
This aggressive move effectively placed former mob bosses and local enforcers directly under the thumb of the government.
A new elite class
By swallowing up these shadowy networks, state intelligence agencies secured a highly unique position in society. The government spies morphed into the ultimate state elite overnight.
Parafianowicz told the television program that the men running these secret operations enjoy massive privilege. He compared them directly to modern royalty.
“A representative of this world of secret services, regardless of whether he was a good intelligence officer, whether he served in the GDR, or whether he would have served in the United States, is a prince. (…) Every spy is a prince,” Parafianowicz emphasized.
The title perfectly captures how these operatives function today. Thanks to their access to top level secrets and hidden criminal assets, these government spies hold all the cards in modern Russia.
Sources: WP Wiadomości
