Two days after a mass support rally in Yekaterinburg that critics say was staged and the government insists was spontaneous, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin published yet another of three campaign articles this time offering scathing criticism of the economy.
"We practically underwent a massive de-industrialization," Putin wrote in an article published by Vedomosti on Monday, blaming Russia's dependence on oil on the chaos of the 1990s. "....the loss of quality and a total simplification of the production structure. This leads to a very high degree of dependency on imported consumer products...."
Putin went on to decry "systemic corruption," pledging the need to "clean up the playing field for businesses" that want to play fair. He also warned that nationalizing enterprises privatized during the 1990s would "paralyze" the economy.
Analysts saw the articles as a longawaited attempt to outline Putin's vision for the future something he has been criticized for lacking in the past.
"He is trying to think out a future policy, to develop a philosophy. It was necessary for Putin to consolidate his plans into something cohesive," Olga Kryshtanovskaya, a sociologist with the Russian Academy of Sciences and a United Russia party member told The Moscow News.
"This is what was expected of him, this was what he was criticized for a lack of vision."
But critics doubted the articles or the support rallies would make a big impact ahead of the March 4 presidential election.
"The voters won't read them. They're too light for the expert community, and too complex for voters. It's a formality that has little political significance," independent political analyst Stanislav Belkovsky told The Moscow News.
As for the brains behind the three articles, Belkovsky pointed to political scientist Dmitry Badovsky. He added, however, that the new political scientists are better than those brought in by former first deputy chief of staff, Vladislav Surkov.
Surkov was replaced last December by Prime Minister Putin's deputy, Vyacheslav Volodin.
Belkovsky added that the campaigns would have little impact, since he believes the election results "have already been decided."
The three articles came out in lieu of political debates, which Putin has traditionally declined to participate in. This has put at least part of the campaigning work on Putin's voters who turned out in the thousands during a rally Saturday in Yekaterinburg.
Organized by the Uralvagonzavod of Nizhny Tagil, the demonstration drew up to 10,000 participants, Kommersant reports. While Putin was expected to show up, his appearance was postponed to give the rally a chance to be more spontaneous and popular, Kommersant cited a United Russia source as saying.
And while demonstrators at the rally shouted that no one had forced them to show up, some bloggers reported being bussed in or pressured by employers to show up. Special buses and trains were organized for participants from nearby factories, Kommersant reported. Ahead of the demonstration, journalist and blogger Andrei Malgin posted a screenshot of an ad offering 1000 rubles for participation.
Keywords: Russia, Economy - Russia, Government, Politics - Russia News - Russia
Two days after a mass support rally in Yekaterinburg that critics say was staged and the government insists was spontaneous, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin published yet another of three campaign articles this time offering scathing criticism of the economy.
"We practically underwent a massive de-industrialization," Putin wrote in an article published by Vedomosti on Monday, blaming Russia's dependence on oil on the chaos of the 1990s. "....the loss of quality and a total simplification of the production structure. This leads to a very high degree of dependency on imported consumer products...."
Putin went on to decry "systemic corruption," pledging the need to "clean up the playing field for businesses" that want to play fair. He also warned that nationalizing enterprises privatized during the 1990s would "paralyze" the economy.
Analysts saw the articles as a longawaited attempt to outline Putin's vision for the future something he has been criticized for lacking in the past.
"He is trying to think out a future policy, to develop a philosophy. It was necessary for Putin to consolidate his plans into something cohesive," Olga Kryshtanovskaya, a sociologist with the Russian Academy of Sciences and a United Russia party member told The Moscow News.
"This is what was expected of him, this was what he was criticized for a lack of vision."
But critics doubted the articles or the support rallies would make a big impact ahead of the March 4 presidential election.
"The voters won't read them. They're too light for the expert community, and too complex for voters. It's a formality that has little political significance," independent political analyst Stanislav Belkovsky told The Moscow News.
As for the brains behind the three articles, Belkovsky pointed to political scientist Dmitry Badovsky. He added, however, that the new political scientists are better than those brought in by former first deputy chief of staff, Vladislav Surkov.
Surkov was replaced last December by Prime Minister Putin's deputy, Vyacheslav Volodin.
Belkovsky added that the campaigns would have little impact, since he believes the election results "have already been decided."
The three articles came out in lieu of political debates, which Putin has traditionally declined to participate in. This has put at least part of the campaigning work on Putin's voters who turned out in the thousands during a rally Saturday in Yekaterinburg.
Organized by the Uralvagonzavod of Nizhny Tagil, the demonstration drew up to 10,000 participants, Kommersant reports. While Putin was expected to show up, his appearance was postponed to give the rally a chance to be more spontaneous and popular, Kommersant cited a United Russia source as saying.
And while demonstrators at the rally shouted that no one had forced them to show up, some bloggers reported being bussed in or pressured by employers to show up. Special buses and trains were organized for participants from nearby factories, Kommersant reported. Ahead of the demonstration, journalist and blogger Andrei Malgin posted a screenshot of an ad offering 1000 rubles for participation.