The well-known liberal Russian opposition politician and economist Grigori Yavlinsky is one of the prominent critics of the Kremlin in Russia. He regularly warns about the effects of the policies of his ruling adversary, Vladimir Putin.
The former chairman and multiple presidential candidate of the Yabloko party has repeatedly condemned the Ukraine war, as reported by the German news platform Münchner Merkur. In an interview with the Russian state broadcaster RBK, Yavlinsky expressed a surprising viewpoint. According to the prestigious think tank “Institute for the Study of War (ISW),” he emphasized in the TV interview that it is in Russia’s interest to sign a ceasefire agreement with Ukraine as soon as possible.
Moreover, he expressed concerns about the accuracy of Russian polls that suggest apparent approval among the population. Instead, he believes they could be part of the official propaganda of the Putin regime. Looking ahead to the Russian presidential election in 2024, the 73-year-old announced his intention to collect the necessary signatures for his participation. In 2012, Yavlinsky was denied candidacy by the Russian electoral authority, allegedly due to forged signatures that were said to account for about a quarter of the total two million expressions of support.
Image: Kremlin.ru, Vladimir Putin (24.06.2023), CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (Image size changed)
.jpg){kind=link}