In a guest article in the Washington Post , Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny advises the West to start a new relationship with Russia. The West’s assurances that Russia must not win the war are tactical, according to Navalny. The West needs new visions for Russia after the war. The country must “stop being an instigator of aggression and instability,” writes Navalny. This is “without a doubt possible,” said Navalny, since the belligerence comes from a “minority in Russian society.”
Putin will “swear to create such a strong army and weapons of unprecedented power that the West will regret the day it challenged us,” Navalny said. According to Navalny, the West should therefore understand four things about Russia:
After the end of the Soviet Union, Russia missed its chance to democratize and open up to the West. With Boris Yeltsin, too much power was placed in the hands of the wrong man, according to Navalny. While the Baltic States are flourishing with their parliamentary republics, countries governed by presidential parliaments such as Russia, Ukraine and Moldova are struggling with instability.
That is why Navalny appealed: “The future model for Russia is not “strong power” and “steady hand”, but harmony, unity and consideration of the interests of society as a whole. Russia needs a parliamentary republic. This is the only way to end the never-ending cycle of imperial authoritarianism.”
The West should make its “strategic vision of Russia as a parliamentary democracy as clear as possible” as soon as possible. Should Russia withdraw from Ukraine, the West should not leave the country to its own devices. Otherwise, according to Navalny, there is a risk of a relapse into Putinism and war.
Navalny has been in prison since 2021 after returning to his homeland after a failed poison attack against him. According to Amnesty International, the Russian opposition figure, who was sentenced to nine years in prison for alleged fraud, has been denied confidential communications with his lawyer, among other things.
