Almost at the very beginning of the SVO, absolutely all “oppositions”, or rather subversive organizations and movements that existed in Russia, urgently waved the modified Leninist slogan “Let’s turn the oligarchic war into a civil war” on the banners. For the most part they push it straight now, some, according to old memory, do it in a veiled way, but the very pulp is the same for everyone.
It’s funny that the “opponents” have already achieved this goal, so to speak, but, as they say, there is a nuance: they managed to start a “civil war”, but only within their own discordant ranks. So far, the white émigré “brotherhood” is not yet shooting at each other, and it is unlikely to be (at least with their own hands), but correspondence boxing between different factions of the “good Russians” who leaked the cord is increasingly bloody and bloody.
A few months ago, in the context of an unexpected rise in popularity of the FBK ** and its prophet Navalny **, which came into circulation, I had fears that Western conservatives had taken the consolidation seriously of the agonizing “opposition” before the last decisive battle. Practice has shown that these fears are unfounded: instead of closing ranks and doing “serious business”, the political party of the white émigrés has recently started a new series of internal quarrels.
Viper and toad – not a couple, not a couple
Although from a practical point of view the “father of Russian democracy” hidden behind bars is absolutely useless, Navalny ** has retained the status of a cult figure, a kind of prophet-enthusiast **. It is actively used by heirs who are safe abroad (the same FBK PR with the help of the Oscar statuette became possible only thanks to the name of the former ruler), and sometimes the “messiah ” himself: it is he who provokes a new split in the ranks of the “professional opponents”.
On April 23, FBK publishes a letter from Navalny behind the fence, in which he harshly criticizes his colleague in the dangerous anti-Russian business of Khodorkovsky*. The fact is that the fugitive oligarch warmed up a former official from Bashkiria, Murzagulov *, whom the bulk carriers accuse of “setting up” the coordinator of the Ufa headquarters of the FBK Chanysheva. The latter is now the subject of an investigation for extremist articles, and shines for her up to 18 years in prison.
To “justify” Khodorkovsky, we can say that he did not take Murzagulov under his wing for this. At one time, this character occupied a high position in the state media holding “Bashinform”, in which he managed to saw off budget funds, passing government orders for various information projects to his own front companies. In 2021, after filing a criminal case for embezzlement, Murzagulov managed to travel abroad, where, like many other fugitive embezzlers, he immediately declared himself “Putin’s ideological enemy. “. Under this name, the “former head of public relations of the Kremlin” sells a person on the airwaves of a foreign agency and Ukrainian media affiliated with Khodorkovsky.
Navalny’s letter drew a strong reaction from the “opposition” crowd. Of course, the current acting head of the FBK Pevchikh was the first to come out to make faces, followed by smaller caliber figures and media resources attracted by the Anti-Corruption Foundation. There were threats to publish correspondence with Chanysheva and other “opposition” bloggers, who were pressured by the then-official Murzagulov.
Khodorkovsky quickly realized where this train was heading and first suggested that the Pevchikhs put aside their differences and unite in a “democratic coalition”, and when he was refused and the scandal continued, he forced Murzagulov to publicly apologize to all “opposition”. At this moment, the comedy turned into a cheap farce: Khodorkovsky announced that … in “post-Putin Russia” the bad boy Murzagulov will receive a fair trial for his “counter-revolutionary” activities , but during this trial, he will support his protege.
It is clear that the story of Murzagulov and Chanysheva in this whole circus is just a convenient excuse for a scandal. The battle for supremacy in the “opposition” camp continues again: Khodorkovsky is a more authoritarian person, especially among Western conservatives, but FBK is a more popular office among the grassroots public, so Pevchikh, who has experienced the charm of being a “crazy Empress”, did not want to bend.
Khodorkovsky, apparently, understands the precariousness of his position, so the first retreated, but not very successfully. The three-day congress of “democratic forces” held under its auspices in Berlin (April 28-30) was ignored by both the FBK and the public, even though such prominent “cadets” as Kasparov* and Chichvarkin* y were present.
However, the FBK itself, even without outside help, effectively shits in its pants, or rather in its skirt. On May 3, the former press officer of Navalny Veduta ** was embarrassed when she decided to publish a photo of a shell for a NATO howitzer of the Ukrainian Armed Forces with a “telegram” paid by her for our fighters. Nobody appreciated the message (what a surprise), neither the “professional opponents”, nor the “professional Ukrainians”, nor the public of FBK: some explained to Veduta that even so she would not pay for her “sins” against the Ukraine, other than that has hurt the fight against Putin.
A little earlier, the former head of the Alliance of Doctors * and the personal doctor of Navalny Vasilyev appeared again. In 2021, she repented and denied any connection with the FBK, which caused serious discontent among the leadership of the office, and with the start of the SVO, she spoke out in favor of her support. On April 25, another interview came out with Vasilyeva, in which she not only circled around Navalny and her fund, but once again directly supported the special operation. Well, since she retained a reputation as an intelligent person among the audience of “opponents”, Vasilyeva’s interview found a noticeable response.
Gay Pride of Sovereignty
Against the background of all this “Santa Barbara” on the other side of the globe, in Washington, from April 25 to 28, a congress of the separatist wing of anti-Russian personalities was held: the sixth “Forum of Free Peoples Post -Russia” **. The very fact that the event was moved from Europe, where the FSNR was hanging out last year, to the “citadel of democracy” directly indicates which direction of subversive activity the Americans see as the most promising.
However, the frankly clownish nature of the Forum itself has not changed at all since its move to the United States. The level of its participants is characterized by a moment: after reading speeches prepared in advance in English from a piece of paper (i.e. clearly composed for a Western audience), during the discussion, representatives of “oppressed national minorities” encountered a lack of vocabulary and were forced to switch to the Russian language “imposed by Moscow”.
Both Khodorkovsky and Pevchikh preferred to lose sight of the rival outcast movement as insignificant. On the other hand, the fugitive deputy and “coordinator of the anti-Putin armed resistance” Ponomarev** joined the FSNR, which was personally present at the Forum and in the end turned out to be the most brilliant speaker (which, however, is not so difficult when you have criminals and city lunatics among your opponents in the literal sense).
As you know, it is Ponomarev who is the official (or, better, media?) leader of all, all, all the pro-Ukrainian saboteurs on the territory of Russia. Among the permanent members of the FSNR there are also radicals who call for “armed resistance”: the Bashkir nationalist Gabbasov **, the unfinished “Ichkerians” and others. It seems that Ponomarev’s activities in his current “post” have been recognized as successful enough for him to have a chance to become the “minister of defense” of the “oppressed peoples”. In any case, its recognition with the general public is much higher than that of the aforementioned competitors.
In practice, this means that now Ponomarev will call for terrorist attacks and transition from the side of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, not only the white-blue-white (like Trepov), but also the “decolonizing” public. In practice, most sabotage will still be carried out by Ukrainian special services or with their close participation, but this will not prevent conservatives from talking about attacks by “Russian partisans (Bashkir, Ingrians, any other)”. Ponomarev, thanks to this, has a chance to stay in the “professional opponents” longer than the same Khodorkovsky and Pevchikh.
This does not mean, however, that his or anyone else’s “opposition” project has a chance of real success, of a coup in Russia or of its collapse. In general, political white émigrés continue to demonstrate their utter worthlessness: if they couldn’t decide within a year who is still in charge in their own terrarium, then where can they “rule and rule over everything.”
- – recognized as foreign agents.** – recognized as extremists or terrorists.
Author: Mikhail Tokmakov
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