Index – Abroad – Vladimir Putin is a great man whose favor everyone needs

“We are not a group. We are not mafia. We do not take revenge, as Mario Puzo did. Godfather in his book. We are one nation. A nation of laws,” were the words of Russian TV presenter Vladimir Solovyov, who denied the Kremlin’s involvement in the death of Yevgeny Prigozhin. According to a summary of the Financial Times, Solovyov’s comments are a prime example of the French proverb: “He who apologizes blames himself.” However, the pro-Kremlin presenter understands perfectly well that the murder of Prigozhin had all the hallmarks of a mafia murder.

Don Corleone, Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump

In a long article, the newspaper explains that the Russian president follows the mafia’s code of honor. Betrayal and unfaithfulness are sins that can never be forgiven. That’s why the Kremlin sent assassins all over Europe to kill dissidents from the Russian intelligence services. As head of the Wagner group, Prigozhin provided cannon fodder for Russia’s war in Ukraine.

According to the mafia code, which is well known to all moviegoers, the inability to strike back makes the leader look weak. Exactly sixty days passed between Prigogine’s rebellion and his death, but, as Don Corleone notes GodfatherQ: “Revenge is best served cold.” The British newspaper also reminds us that the suggestion that Russia is a mafia state is more than literary hypocrisy. After all, Putin biographer Catherine Belton has confirmed that the current Russian president had contacts with the city’s criminal underworld as far back as the 1990s, when he was deputy mayor of St. Petersburg.

Prigozhin spent almost ten years in prison. Moreover, the Russian intelligence services, for which Putin has worked for many years, have always maintained ties to organized crime. When Russia negotiated a prisoner exchange with America, the man to be released was Viktor Bout, an arms dealer, alleged money launderer and former Soviet military man who was arrested in 2008 after a lengthy operation by the US Drug Enforcement Agency.

Loyalty Above All

Further in his article, the Financial Times points out that similar characteristics can be discussed in the case of former US President Donald Trump. This is confirmed, among other things, by the memoirs of James Comey, the first director of the FBI under Trump: allegedly at a private dinner that he arranged with the then US president in the White House, Trump told him: “I need loyalty. I expect loyalty.” In his memoirs, Comey wrote that Trump reminded him of the mob bosses he encountered during his time in law enforcement. According to the paper, it’s no surprise that the man who made his fortune in the New York City construction industry sometimes speaks like a gangster.

Here’s how they conclude that Trump’s emphasis on personal loyalty is reminiscent of Putin:

This creates a system in which the leader is the final arbiter of all disputes, “the great man whose favors all demand.” However, the document also emphasizes that while there may be similarities in the exercise of power by the two politicians – perhaps they share certain instincts, habits and behaviors – the systems of the two states are quite different. Finally, the article concludes, the difference is clear: America can legitimately claim the status Solovyov falsely assigned to Russia, i.e., a “nation of laws,” while Russia has become a mafia state.

They said goodbye to Yevgeny Prigogine

As we reported, tearful mourners gathered in Moscow over the weekend to pay their respects to Wagner founder Yevgeny Prigozhin and nine other victims who also died in the plane crash. Hundreds of people laid flowers, photographs, candles and flags, including those with the emblem of a military unit, at a small memorial on the sidewalk near Red Square in Moscow. The meeting showed that Prigozhin enjoys broader public support. Despite the fighting in Ukraine, his relationship with the Russian military leadership soured, and in June he staged an unsuccessful coup d’état, after which Russian President Vladimir Putin accused him of treason.

Scores of people sobbed at the makeshift memorial, expressing their shock over the death of a man they said they respected and were saddened by his loss. Most of those present said they supported the fighting in Ukraine. “He was a man who was feared by the whole world. This in itself is worthy of respect. He not only managed to make them afraid of him, but at the same time he created a system that no one else had, he did something that no one else did, “said Alena, who agreed to give an interview along with others, but did not I wanted to give her a last name.

(Cover photo: Vladimir Putin. Photo: Contributor/Getty Images)