Thousands of Russians paid their last respects to Mikhail Gorbachev on Saturday, September 3, in the Great Column Hall of the House of Trade Unions, a few hundred meters from the Kremlin walls. The tradition is revered in part because it resembles earlier funerals for Soviet leaders. Two soldiers in full dress flank the coffin of the last Soviet leader, who died on August 30 at the age of 91. Three soldiers of the Kremlin Guard, shouldered rifles and high calves, formed a guard of honor between the public and the dead. No Orthodox symbols were visible, but a priest recited a short prayer.

Some key differences reveal the historical significance of the last president of the Soviet Union, the nature of the current administration, and their apparent incompatibility. The very eloquent absence of the head of state – a historic first – suggests contempt for the man and his political legacy. Vladimir Putin refused a state funeral “Elements”Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov reported.

Putin sent a condolence telegram to the family of the deceased “Extremely Dry”Mikhail Shevchuk notes on the site Democratic governanceand does not include “There is no epithet about Gorbachev, not unfriendly, unlike the telegram addressed to Daria Dugina’s relatives. [égérie nationaliste et fille de l’idéologue ultraconservateur Alexandre Douguine, assassinée le 20 août] There were so many kind words, it was remarkable. Putin writes about her that she is a Russian patriot with a true Russian heart, while Gorbachev was a politician..

Hated because of his “weakness”.

It was Mikhail Gorbachev who broke the KGB’s grip on the country, which includes Vladimir Putin and his closest allies. As for the hawks of the state, as for the great Russian nationalists, the former general secretary literally hates him “Weakness”According to them, the countries of the Warsaw Pact and the socialist republics (including Ukraine) were allowed to escape from Moscow’s cane.

Following a tacit directive from the Kremlin master, the Russian political elite obediently ignored the ceremony. With the exception of former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev (2008-2012), today he is confined to the role of Deputy Director of the Russian Security Council. Leaning toward reconciliation with the West and modernization of the country, he honored Mikhail Gorbachev in 2011 at the age of 80 with the country’s highest civilian honor, the Order of Andrei Pervosvany. Medvedev’s presence on Saturday was by no means obvious, as the former president has stepped up his bellicose and hostile statements toward Ukraine and the West in general in recent months, cementing his place among regime hawks.

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