The “simple Russians” knew from the Wagner uprising that the Ukraine war was purely to keep Putin in power, according to Russian opposition figure Khodorkovsky in the daily topics. “This is the most painful blow to Putin’s regime.”
In an interview with the daily topics said the Wagner Troupe uprising was far broader in scale and more deeply rooted than Russian President Vladimir Putin would have liked. Any attempt to punish those who planned or participated in this uprising would lead to the complete collapse of the front. “I think everyone in Russia is now convinced that popular and troop support for Putin is very low.”
The mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin was certainly not the first to say that the war against Ukraine was not about Ukraine at all. But the “simple Russian” has now heard from Prigozhin that that’s true. “People, ordinary Russians, believe that this war is a means of staying in power and diverting money from the state budget. That’s probably the painful blow that Putin’s regime received,” Khodorkovsky said.
“Common Russians” are probably more inclined to support those who started the uprising than Putin or his regime. Khodorkovsky is convinced that with the start of this war, Putin initiated the end of his own regime. “But this uprising has shortened the remaining time of the regime again.”
“Tens of thousands of victims for Putin’s stay in power”
According to Khodorkovsky, Putin has shown that he is willing to sacrifice thousands and tens of thousands in order to stay in power. “The difference between Ukrainians and Russians is irrelevant to him. That’s why any kind of peaceful protest is unnecessary.” In times of war, however, a dictatorship can only be abolished through violence or the threat of violence; everything else is a completely detached idea.
On the question of who could take power after a change of power, Khodorkovsky said there were many capable people in prison – hundreds of political prisoners. They could be freed if such an uprising took place. The Russian opposition was not ready for such a moment and this mistake should not be repeated.
Although he is not a politician, he himself is ready “to take on any task that a government asks me to do for a transitional period.” He is manager. “And if it’s necessary, I’m willing to work in that role – for a not too long time.”
Mikhail Khodorkovsky
Mikhail Khodorkovsky is one of Putin’s best-known critics. The entrepreneur and former oligarch was CEO of the Russian oil company Yukos, which was dissolved in 2007. He was in prison from 2003 to 2013 and has been living in exile in London with his family since 2015. In May 2023, the Kremlin declared Khodorkovsky a “foreign agent” and put him on the relevant list of the Ministry of Justice.