Putin, Russia and the West BBC 2. [Endgame]

This is history in the making and it tells us that history is repetition. It began with Putin, the strong man confronting the oligarchs, who had ransacked Russia for personal gain and reaped the rewards of countless billions, trillions and effective control of the state. Putin the exKGB man wanted a different kind of democracy. He wanted the state to be in control. It was a return to what he knew. Next up was Chechnya, part of a greater Russia. The army was given a free role. The media enclosed so that a silent genocide took place. This was win-win for Putin. The cold war with the US hotted up as Georgia and the Ukraine sought independence. Tanks in the street in the South Ossetian war. Seems familiar. Rigged elections, The Orange Revolution in Ukraine and the poisoning of a putative President Yushchenko is like something out of a five and dime novel. Mendevev as the elected President seemed to me a playing with the idea of democracy. Putin as Prime Minister being the real power behind the throne. But this programme showed that it was not as simple as that. Mendevev struck up deals with Obama that Putin would not have. It also showed that Mendevev was also angling for another term, but his nomination of Putin showed his ambition had been brought to heel. Putin was re-elected as President. The media cowed into support and opposition persecuted and suppressed. Putin took power in 2000. His ‘mandate’ runs out in 2020. It’s the old USSR dressed up by a new name Putinism.