My man Nicky P, Nikolai Patrushev, is giving interviews again (lots of spare time to fill, I suspect), this time in Komsomolskaya Pravda.
A thread
https://kp.ru/daily/27651/5036217/
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His key point is that the world is changing (hardly novel) and by implication the old status quo (= current world order) is obsolete:
“we are witnessing serious changes in the world. I mean not only the geopolitical situation, but also the state of affairs in the economy, the technological sphere, social and cultural processes. The last time such tectonic shifts occurred was after the collapse of the USSR.”
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So, not *just* Trump.
But certainly Trump:
“Then the West was unable to adapt normally to the new realities and continued to live as during the Cold War, constantly looking for enemies.”
Now there is a new broom coming to DC.
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Of course, “talk about Trump sending armed forces to conquer new states for the US can hardly be called justified. Nevertheless, there is no doubt that in all these areas the new administration will very aggressively push its own interests.”
Moscow loves that it doesn’t look so uniquely adventurist any more!
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So this is the usual Moscow expectation management line (ie, we can’t assume Trump will be useful to us), but with Patrushev’s his own particular twist. Why might Trump not manage to change the status quo?
Because the “notorious US deep state” might assassinate him.
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Even so, “I believe that negotiations on Ukraine should be conducted between Russia and the United States without the participation of other Western countries.”
After all…
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“There is nothing to talk about with London and Brussels. The EU leadership, for example, has long since lost the right to speak on behalf of many of its members, such as Hungary, Slovakia, Austria, Romania and some other European countries interested in stability in Europe and taking a balanced position with respect to Russia.”
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It is noteworthy that this hyperhawk nonetheless implicitly accepts that the USA remains, if not the global hegemon, still the one determining power.
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Meanwhile, in the guise of fellowship he restates the usual line on Ukraine:
“the Ukrainian people remain close to us, fraternal, connected by centuries-old ties with Russia, no matter how much the Kiev propagandists obsessed with "Ukrainianism" claim the opposite.”
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So fraternal is this tie that “it is also important the world recognizes the inclusion of the DPR, LPR, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions, the Republic of Crimea and Sevastopol, which are an integral part of our country in accordance with the Constitution”
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Recognise it, he implies, or else trouble may spread.
Firstly, “It is possible that in the coming year Ukraine will cease to exist altogether.”
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And “discrimination against the Russian population in a number of countries, and of course, the Baltics and Moldova, must stop."
why?...
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Because “the authorities of these states continue to lead themselves into the deepest crisis with ill-considered actions and at the same time stubbornly crank the Russophobic hurdy-gurdy.”
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Aside from the fact that I would love to see a “Russophobic hurdy-gurdy,” right up there with a “Russophile harmonica,” what can one glean from all this nonsense?
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1. Patrushev seems to have time on his hands, despite now being a permanent member of the Security Council (without portfolio). Remember, he may still have credibility with Putin, but no actual power.
2. His ‘Medvedification’ continues. Not for him admittedly the same intoxicated Telegram rants, but pseudo-measured interviews. All the same his role is to go beyond the official line, to float extreme options but also to make the Kremlin look – relatively – reasonable.
3. And there’s still that uncertainty about Trump: will he be useful, will he be dangerous, will be contained by the blob, etc? Even the Russians don’t know.