The world needs to understand Putin
For his first twelve years in power, Mr Putin’s inherent conservativism was been tempered by the need to appeal to a significant and influential liberal elite. But with the desertion of this class to the ranks of protesters, we are seeing a shift, and finally the true Putin is making his worldview known.
But Putin’s steps should not be interpreted as winding the clock back. Russian society is in transition - from pure form of totalitarianism to something new. This conservative moment in this transition represents more a rethinking of what the end of this transition will be rather than a refusal to change anything at all.
Russia cannot return to the old Soviet model – the premises for it are totally lacking in Russian society. It is possible only on the symbolic level – such as accent on Soviet patriotic themes like return to the Soviet anthem or socialist rhetoric.