In The Media
Lilia Shevtsova
{
"authors": [
"Lilia Shevtsova"
],
"type": "commentary",
"centerAffiliationAll": "",
"centers": [
"Carnegie Endowment for International Peace",
"Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center"
],
"collections": [],
"englishNewsletterAll": "",
"nonEnglishNewsletterAll": "",
"primaryCenter": "Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center",
"programAffiliation": "",
"programs": [],
"projects": [],
"regions": [
"Russia"
],
"topics": [
"Political Reform"
]
}
Source: Getty
Commentary
Military-Patriotic Mobilization and How It Will End
The worse the situation becomes in Russia, the better it looks in the eye of the people. This can be explained by mass self-deception and people’s desire to believe in a fairy tale. However, Russia is approaching a moment of truth when people will realize how serious the country’s problems are.
Published on May 20, 2014
Russia has seen nothing of the kind in the last twenty-five years. I am not talking about Putin’s stunning 82 percent approval rating. I mean the incredible optimism of the Russian public. Even those dissatisfied with their lot have suddenly experienced a rush of happiness and optimism. While the country has rolled back all its reforms, 58 percent of the respondents to a Levada Center poll believe that reforms continue (only 27 percent think otherwise). As authoritarianism gains new strength and political life becomes less transparent, 57 percent of those polled say it isn’t so, claiming that Russian political life is open and government policies are widely discussed (only 33 percent express their skepticism). The state infringes on human rights, but only 38 percent see it this way, while 48 percent consider their country democratic.
In short, the worse the situation becomes in Russia, the better it looks in the eye of the people. We are witnessing mass self-deception, people’s desire to believe in a fairy tale and a hoax. The long demoralized and splintered society suddenly consolidated around a belief that it is doing great. It is obvious that society could not resist the potent drug of military patriotism and consolidated around the flag in the face of a threat, which is in fact another imitation. But as military-patriotic mobilizations of the past suggest, this drug wears off pretty fast. When the feeling of euphoria is gone, uneasy return to reality sets in. Russia has already experienced similar mobilizations during the second Chechen War of 1999 and the Russia-Georgia War of 2008, and it took the country half a year or even less to sober up.
Russia’s current military-patriotic high is much stronger and will be harder to overcome. Nevertheless, Russia will have to do it. People will be forced to see how serious the problems the country faces are. This will be the moment of truth, which Russia is fast approaching.
About the Author
Lilia Shevtsova
Former Senior Associate, Russian Domestic Politics and Political Institutions Program, Moscow Center
Shevtsova chaired the Russian Domestic Politics and Political Institutions Program at the Carnegie Moscow Center, dividing her time between Carnegie’s offices in Washington, DC, and Moscow. She had been with Carnegie since 1995.
- Putin Has Fought His Way Into a Corner
- How Long Russians Will Believe in Fairy Tale?Commentary
Lilia Shevtsova
Recent Work
Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.
More Work from Carnegie Europe
- Can Europe Still Matter in Syria?Commentary
Europe’s interests in Syria extend beyond migration management, yet the EU trails behind other players in the country’s post-Assad reconstruction. To boost its influence in Damascus, the union must upgrade its commitment to ensuring regional stability.
Bianka Speidl, Hanga Horváth-Sántha
- Europolis, Where Europe EndsCommentary
A prophetic Romanian novel about a town at the mouth of the Danube carries a warning: Europe decays when it stops looking outward. In a world of increasing insularity, the EU should heed its warning.
Thomas de Waal
- Taking the Pulse: What Issue Is Europe Ignoring at Its Peril in 2026?Commentary
2026 has started in crisis, as the actions of unpredictable leaders shape an increasingly volatile global environment. To shift from crisis response to strategic foresight, what under-the-radar issues should the EU prepare for in the coming year?
Thomas de Waal
- Solidarity Is a Must for Europe to Ensure Its Own SecurityCommentary
Europe is designing a new model of collective security that no longer relies on the United States. For this effort to succeed, solidarity between member states that have different threat perceptions is vital.
Erik Jones
- Taking the Pulse: Is the EU Too Weak to Be a Global Player?Commentary
Beset by an increasingly hostile United States, internal divisions, and the threat of Russian aggression, the EU finds itself in a make-or-break moment. U.S. President Donald Trump calls it a decaying group of nations headed by weak leaders. Is Europe able to prove him wrong?
Thomas de Waal
