The current military invasion by Russian troops has placed many of Vladimir Putin’s American admirers, including Donald Trump, in an awkward situation. In the past, Trump and other Republicans praised Vladimir Putin as a strong and savvy leader. This was in spite of the fact that Putin runs a Russian oligarchy made up of billionaires, with Putin’s personal fortune and that of his oligarch friends estimated to be in the billions. Russia’s ultra-rich are among the biggest owners of private jets, fancy mansions and superyachts, some of which are found in the U.S. Although the U.S. and other Western countries have imposed severe sanctions on Russia and members of Putin’s administration, the challenge is their fortunes and assets could be held through shell companies, complicating the ownership chain. While imposing sanctions on Russian’s ultra-rich is important, getting at the money itself is complex. So far, even as the U.S., the U.K. and other Western countries have ramped up sanctions on more than 100 Russian individuals and entities, these assets of the country’s elite — which can be worth hundreds of millions of dollars each — have avoided any direct hit.
As in Europe, many ultra-right American groups looked up to Putin as a some sort of model leader for the ‘populism’ movement. Fox News host Tucker Carlson urged Americans to ask themselves what they had against Putin, echoing the Kremlin as he denigrated Ukraine as not a democracy but a puppet of the West and the United States. Former President Donald Trump defended his praise of Russian President Vladimir Putin, causing a number of top Republicans to distance themselves from his position. What makes matters worst is that Putin’s regime has already imprisoned thousands of Russian protesters against the invasion. So much for populism! If the Russian military aggression continues longer than expected, there will be even greater unrest back in Russia, particularly as Russian military and Ukrainian civilian casualties rise. Most observers believe that an inability of the Russian military to overthrown the current Ukrainian government in under two weeks will cause further enormous stress on Putin’s rule.
The negative toll on Russia’s economy as a result of Western sanctions and other economic penalties has already resulted in a massive slump in Russian stocks, considered to be the third-worst in the history of stock markets. The Russian ruble has taken a major hit which will increase the costs of imported goods in Russia and contribute to the already post-pandemic economic downturn. Any resulting reduction in the export of Russian oil and gas will have an impact on American and European energy markets, again contributing to the current hyperinflation world-wide. Moreover, the war in Ukraine threatens the world’s economic recovery.
For many of his long-time admirers — from those in the U.S., the U.K., France, Germany, Italy, and Brazil — it is something of an awkward spot. The longer Putin’s aggression continues, the more populist movements around the world will be forced to be on the defensive over their past and present support for Vladimir Putin. With every day, it is clearly becoming ever more uncomfortable to try to defend Putin’s actions, despite what Donald Trump might say.
FROLITICKS 