The liquidation of Prigozhin and the social model offered as an alternative

Written by: Xhelal Neziri Editor and associate of The Geopost from North Macedonia

Unfortunately, this brutal model of social organization is also being promoted as “successful” in North Macedonia by some political movements. Putin is the most popular world leader in the country, and his birthday makes hundreds of headlines in the local media, even if it is an event that has nothing to do with the public interest of the country.

The death of the leader of the Russian mercenary group “Wagner”, Yevgeny Prigozhin, was not a surprise. He lost his life in an airplane accident when a private plane crashed along with ten members of the notorious group while flying from Moscow to Saint Petersburg. In fact, he was liquidated less than two months after he rebelled against Russia’s autocratic leader Vladimir Putin. While the Kremlin calls it an air disaster, the mercenary group said the plane was hit by a surface-to-air missile. The rest of the world did not consider this news confirmed and suspected that Prigozhin may have staged the death.

It was not a surprise, because all opponents of Putin had this end. Since the beginning of Russian aggression against Ukraine, dozens of Russian businessmen, activists and journalists who opposed Putin have died under mysterious circumstances. The president of Lukoil, Ravil Maganov, died after falling from a hospital window in Moscow. Another high-ranking Lukoil manager, Alexander Subbotin, was found dead near Moscow. One of Gazprom’s top managers, Leonid Shulman, was found dead in his villa in the village of Leninsky near Volgograd. Another Gazprom director, Aleksandar Tyulakov, was found dead in the garage just a day after the aggression against Ukraine began. The director of Gazprombank, Vladislav Avayev, was found dead in a hotel room along with his wife and daughter. The former director of gas producer Novatek, Sergei Protosenya, was found dead in Spain along with his wife and daughter. Mikhail Watford, another gas billionaire, was found dead in England just three days after the aggression began. Vasily Melnikov, a businessman dealing in medicine, was found dead along with his wife and two children. Elena Kostyuchenko, Natalia Arno and Irina Babloyan have long worked to expose the Kremlin’s lies. As they traveled through Europe last year, each was poisoned by unknown toxins. A dozen Russian journalists who disagree with Putin are working in exile. Entire newsrooms have been moved to European Union (EU) countries, Israel, and Turkey for fear of regime retaliation. People living in Russia have no freedom of thought or expression. Anything that the Putin regime does not like is sanctioned in the most ruthless manner.

Unfortunately, this brutal model of social organization is also promoted as “successful” in North Macedonia by some political movements. Putin is the most popular world leader in the country, and his birthday makes hundreds of headlines in the local media, even if it is an event that has nothing to do with the public interest of the country. It promotes a total darkness of authoritarianism that breeds persecution, imprisonment, murder, poisoning and war. It is a political system that does not work and depends on the will of one man who tramples down anyone who gets in his way. It is a state that does not recognize the concept of the rule of law, because law depends on the will of one man. This man, that is Putin, along with others close to him, is above the laws and constitution of the Russian Federation.

The murder of Prigozhin and many others before him should be a moment of course reassessment for all who promote Russia as a model or alternative to the EU and NATO. They must ask themselves to which (anti-)value system they are committed: Like the one that is the reality in Russia?

Certain political-economic media structures have been trying to install this system in North Macedonia for a long time. Moscow’s most transparent attempt was registered in 2018, when it tried to invest in the creation of a new political movement in North Macedonia through two of Putin’s most influential people – Leonid Savin and Aleksandar Dugin – to represent Russian interests in that country. The party was named “United Macedonia” (Edinstvena Makedonija), a name reminiscent of Putin’s party (“Edinstvena Rusia”).

Using ethno-religious proximity to the Slavic peoples of the region was the most efficient way to increase influence. If you look at the work, whether in the form of investment or development funds, Russia is far from the EU and the US. Since the independence of North Macedonia, the EU has invested 1.8 billion euros, while the Russian Federation has invested only 26 million euros. The U.S. has provided hundreds of millions of dollars in non-repayable funds for the country’s development. NATO countries are important trading partners. The young people fleeing North Macedonia seeking justice and development are heading straight for Western countries. Perhaps the emotional ties to Russia are not reflected in the rational decisions of the citizens who are looking for a modern state that will allow them to live a good and dignified life. Freedom and human dignity are the basic values of the Euro-Atlantic structures toward which the country is moving. Attempting to stop this path and offer other alternatives is a dangerous adventure that comes at a high cost. /Geopost/