Într-o serie de tweet-uri, Bill Keating, membru al Congresului, Camera Reprezentanților, din partea partidului Democrat, reprezentând al nouălea district din statul Massachusetts, critică situația din Rusia cu privire la asaltul asupra opoziției politice dar și postura agresivă a Moscovei în vecinătate.
For more than 2 decades, Vladimir Putin has ruled Russia with an Iron fist. He has threatened democratic movements around the world and stifled dissent within its borders. Under the corrupt leadership of #Putin, Russia authoritarianism and kleptocracy know no bounds.
— Congressman Bill Keating (@USRepKeating) May 27, 2021
“The violet or sudden death of a high profile activist sends a message to anyone who is considering speaking up: your life is in danger”. Since Navalny’s arrest, “police have made more than 10,000 arrests.” As @mashagessen explains, “simply living in Russia is scary.”
— Congressman Bill Keating (@USRepKeating) May 27, 2021
How has Putin held on to power for so long?
As @yuvalweber explains, Putin “relies on a perception of inevitability.” “If both supporters and opponents believe that the future looks like the present, then why bother changing anything?”— Congressman Bill Keating (@USRepKeating) May 27, 2021
When it comes to oligarchs, @christogrozev states that “it’s a vicious circle”. To prevent oligarchs from supporting the Kremlin, Grozev believes that we must “make it difficult for the people with whom these oligarchs trade” – in what he examples as “a symbiotic relationship”.
— Congressman Bill Keating (@USRepKeating) May 27, 2021
“Russians have effectively lost the ability to travel abroad and to leave the country. For LGBT people and women facing abuse, this means cutting off a lifeline” –@mashagessen. For refugees and asylum seekers, Putin’s increasing isolation has made leaving effectively impossible.
— Congressman Bill Keating (@USRepKeating) May 27, 2021
@mashagessen and @edwardlucas believe that “the best defense we have is the integrity of our system.” “The greatest weakness we have is the problems in our system that enemies can exploit,” said Lucas. As Gessen states, it’s a question of “not getting in bed with Putin”.
— Congressman Bill Keating (@USRepKeating) May 27, 2021
@edwardlucas also sees that if Russians were able to look across the border towards Ukraine and “say this is an alternative, this is better, that destabilizes the Kremlin… A successful Ukraine…is a terrible thing for Russia.”
— Congressman Bill Keating (@USRepKeating) May 27, 2021
@christogrozev explains that “whenever we see such symptoms of a downward spiral of popularity of the Kremlin, we see an escalation of rhetoric toward Ukraine.”
— Congressman Bill Keating (@USRepKeating) May 27, 2021
Bill Keating citează mai mulți experți care explică situația din Rusia și cum am putea să o gestionăm, din postura transatlantică. De exemplu, îl citează pe Edward Lucas care observă că o Ucraina de succes este o amenințare pentru Putin și regimul său deoarece oamenii din Rusia ar putea să vadă că un stat care a ieșit din sfera rusă de influentă și care se îndreaptă spre un model de guvernare vestic are mai multe beneficii decat status quo-ul în care se află ei.
Scriitoarea Masha Gessen este citată spunând că cea mai bună apărare împotriva acțiunilor lui Putin este “să nu intrăm în pat cu el”, cu alte cuvinte, să ne prețuim valorile, deoarece compromisul nu face decât să întărească regimul său.
