Putin’s alarming criticism of Russians who oppose the war recalls Stalinist rhetoric

Overwhelmed by fierce resistance in Ukraine and devastating economic sanctions, Russian President Vladimir Putin is using language reminiscent of the rhetoric employed in the Josef Stalin-era courtroom shams of the 1930s.

In a disturbing speech on Wednesday, Putin described his opponents as “mosquitoes” trying to weaken the country for the benefit of the West, a very harsh statement that could pave the way for a strong crackdown on anyone who dares to condemn the invasion of Russia. Ukraine.

His tirade seemed to reflect his frustration with Russia’s slow progress in Ukraine, where its forces are bogged down on the outskirts of kyiv and other northeastern cities. The Russians have made further progress in the south, but have been unable to capture the strategic port of Mariupol on the Sea of ​​Azov, and their advance towards the Black Sea shores has also slowed.

Russia, on the other hand, is feeling the effects of Western sanctions, which cut off government access to about half of the country’s reserves and deal heavy blows to numerous sectors of the economy.

With his dreams of a quick takeover of Ukraine dashed and facing mounting economic costs, Putin took his anger out on his opponents with a venomous speech.

“The Russian people will always know how to distinguish between true patriots and scum and traitors, and will spit them out like a mosquito that accidentally landed in its mouth. They’ll crash on the pavementPutin said Wednesday in a call with his top brass.

“I’m sure”, he added, “that a natural and necessary purification of society will strengthen our country, our solidarity, cohesion and readiness to respond to any challenge”.

The language used did not go unnoticed among connoisseurs of Soviet history. During the farces mounted by the Stalin government to try the “enemies of the country”, the authorities resorted to expressions such as “reptiles” and “crazy”.

Without hiding his fury, Putin launched it against Russians who oppose the war in Ukraine, whom he described as a “fifth column” that dutifully serves the interests of the West, ready to “sell his own mother”.

“I do not condemn those who have villas in Miami or on the French Riviera, who cannot live without foie gras, oysters and so-called gender freedoms”, Putin continued. “They are not a problem. The problem is represented by those who are mentally there (in the West) and not here, with our people, with Russia. They do not remember or realize that they are… disposable, that they use them to cause the greatest harm to our people.”.

As he spoke, a State Investigative Commission announced that it was investigating several people accused of spreading “false information” about the invasion of Ukraine. Including Veronika Belotserkovskaya, a popular socialite blogger who has written books on French and Italian cuisine and who spends some of her time in the south of France. She used her as an example of a cosmopolitan, food-loving Russian who has nothing in common with the masses.

The commission said it will issue an international arrest warrant, saying Belotserkovskaya’s Instagram posts “detract” to the Russian authorities and military.

Belotserkovskaya responded by saying that “I’ve just been officially declared a decent person!”.

She is being investigated under legislation rushed into law on March 4 by a Kremlin-controlled parliament, a week after the Ukraine invasion.

The legislation contemplates sentences of up to 15 years for publishing “false” information about the military, contrary to the official version.

Putin and his people describe the war in Ukraine as a “special military operation designed to eliminate neo-Nazi nationalists” and end a potential military threat to Russia, goals that most of the world does not take seriously.

While indiscriminately bombing Mariupol, kyiv, Kharkiv and other Ukrainian cities, the government moved to shut down access to the foreign press and to Facebook and Instagram, while declaring Meta an organization “extremist”.

The tight control of the information that circulates helps the Kremlin to generate the support of broad sectors of the population, who only see what the state media say.

Despite draconian new laws, information controls and increasingly aggressive propaganda, thousands of Russians are taking part in anti-war protests, risking arrest.

In a powerful challenge to the authorities, a state television employee displayed a poster with an anti-war message during a news broadcast. Marina Ovsyannikova was fined the equivalent of $270 and faces charges that could send her to jail.

One of the leading opposition figures, Alexei Navalny, who is serving a two-and-a-half-year prison sentence and faces charges that could see him spend another 13 years behind bars, said on Tuesday that the war would cause a breakup of Russia and that “everyone has a duty to oppose the war”.