Arms deliveries: this Russian connoisseur accuses Westen of acting naively New libel trial: Trump must go to court in January 2024

In an interview, Boris Yeltsin’s former adviser Anders Åslund accused the West of being naive in its handling of arms supplies to Ukraine.

In an interview with German journalists from Die Welt, today’s author and researcher at the Stockholm Free World Forum think tank said: “It is absurd that the West has always insisted that Ukraine should not attack Russian bases with Western weapons.”

You could also say, “Ukraine has to fight with tied hands to get weapons,” Åslund said.

This consensus is widespread not only in the US, but also in Germany and France, according to the Russian researcher. “Fortunately, that is now slowly changing.” Yet the countries did not move fast enough, for example in the integration of Ukraine into NATO.

Until now, the German federal government has been hesitant to supply fighter jets, for example, because it feared that the fighter jets could also be used for attacks on Russian territory. This could further escalate the war in Ukraine. Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) had also hesitated for a long time when it came to main battle tanks, but eventually promised to deliver them.

Putin’s paranoia

From 1991 to 1994, Åslund worked as an economic adviser to then-Russian President Boris Yeltsin and had direct insight into the Kremlin government. Now Åslund told the “world” that the regime under dictator Vladimir Putin was “not stable at all”. Putin hardly dares to go outside anymore, it is often rumored that a double will appear instead of Putin.

“Putin seems scared,” Åslund said. “He built bunkers at his three main residences. He travels across the country in an armored train. (…) The extent of the paranoia seems almost pathological.” You can read more about the armored special train that Putin should take through the country here on T-Online.

According to the Russia researcher, that uncertainty is not a sign of strength. On the contrary. “He is completely insane and believes every conspiracy theory that Russia is threatened by external and internal enemies.”

Putin also avoids face-to-face meetings with his Security Council, a body that is actually very important to his government work. He prefers to be connected via video now.

Åslund says his power base has shrunk because of his withdrawal. Putin has reduced his circle i.e. people he trusts to some former KGB agents like brothers Yuri and Mikhail Kovalchuk who are corrupt businessmen. On the other hand, he hardly trusts technocrats, whom he still gathers around him and who are responsible for the actual work of government.

Sources

Other interesting articles:

(t-online/dsc)