SOURCE: KREMLIN.RU
In consequence, by July 1 morning, thus at the start of the final day of voting, 55 percent of Russia’s registered voters had already cast their ballot. But at the end of Russia’s sevenday national plebiscite, another 15 percent of Russians turned out for the ballot in what was the most challenging to have the outcomes falsified. The whole vote showed that Putin is no longer popular as the Russian president, nor does he have legitimacy for being an absolute
leader, while Russian society is unable to decry anything now. Thus the Russian regime will keep on mastering new tools for coercion. The paradox is that the country’s officials would not do that if Russian citizens showed mass support for Vladimir Putin. But for that, Russians might have taken a far more revolutionary stance. First, there would be no point in tightening repression, and secondly, that would be far too risky.
11 July 2020
BREGANCON PROGRAM: FRANCE’S MACRON TILTS TOWARDS RUSSIA The ongoing coronavirus pandemic has placed French-Russian rapprochement in limbo for roughly six months following its official kickoff in August 2019 during a meeting at the Fort de Bregancon, a summer residence of the president of France. But now the whole process is gaining momentum. There is yet one more topic that could push France closer toward Russia, with the Libya civil war, where both have similar goals. www.warsawinstitute.org
7
