Putin's overthrow or death will not change Russia. The goal of the civilized world should be to destroy the system of manipulation of public consciousness in Russia

Yuri Maznychenko 2 April 2022

"In such difficult times, I prefer not to give out interviews. But when I found out you were a serious English press, I decided it was necessary. You would write it as it is, without embellishment and taking it out of context. Besides, I have pleasant memories about your country," - the Ukraine national team head coach said to his interviewee. Journalist Daniel Boffey from The Guardian meets Kyiv's spring sunshine with pleasure after the shitty, as he descibes, weather in Brussels. He begins the interview by asking Oleksandr Petrakov why he did not leave the capital during the war, what happens to his family now and what fate now awaits the Ukrainian team, which at the end of March was to play in the 2022 World Cup playoffs.

I will not retell the content of this discussion, which has already appeared on March 1 in a British newspaper article. But I would like to dwell on what Petrakov, who was born in the USSR and has seen a lot in his life, said about the Russians: "They have always stood out for their arrogance, they consider themselves superior to others. And now they have decided to invade our land, bomb our cities and kill our children. Russians are a horde. They are not Slavs, because look what they are doing. As long as I am alive, I will not shake hands with them. That's not anger, that's hatred. And, I'm sure, it will last forever," - Petrakov mouthed the words with firmness.

It has been several days since the last round of talks between the Ukrainian and Russian delegations in Istanbul finished. And their results have begun to reveal the real sentiments of the Russian people, who have recently been rubbing their hands with the prospect of capturing Kiev and are now confused that the Russian armed forces are retreating without removing the "Kiev junta" and without freeing "brotherly Ukraine from the Nazis". The most ardent supporters of the military invasion are full of bile, who are already calling the retreat a betrayal of the ideas of the great Russian nation, imposed for many years by Vladimir Putin's regime.

As of day 39, the war is not yet close to being over. Yes, it is a little quieter all over Ukraine, and in Kyiv, it feels like there is a return to a more traditional way of life: many people have moved their families to safer places and are returning to the capital, businesses are slowly coming back to work, and on April 1 the local authorities are throwing a real party for the residents. After a month of prohibition, they finally allowed the sale of alcohol.

But the most important is the fact that Ukraine is winning this war. Russia, which a few weeks ago was exceptionally stubborn in the negotiation process, has shifted from "bio laboratories funded by America to eradicate the Slavic ethnos" to more down-to-earth rhetoric. The aggressors are no longer opposed to Ukraine joining the EU, as long as there are no NATO bases near Russia's borders. Moreover, there is even a possible dialogue with the Russians on the future of the occupied Crimea and the military quasi-states they created in the Donetsk and Lugansk regions.

Ukraine beats Russia because Russia is used to setting big goals and not accepting compromises. Any deviation from the set goals raises a wave of misunderstanding in the aggressive Russian society. When even the steadily working TV propaganda is weak, it creates psychological dissonance among people who, for the sake of a great victory, agreed to endure the economic turmoil of international sanctions. If Russia is now distancing itself from the great victory, then what was it for?

For years, the Russian authorities have created an alternative reality for their people, who are used to dividing everyone into "ours" and "theirs". Through force and fear, Putin's regime has created today's Russia: in it, tradition prevails over knowledge, dissent from the majority is seen as treason against the motherland, people embittered by their bad lives seek a world conspiracy theory, and their belief in the greatness of the nation is not questioned when the state once again resolves international conflicts by force.

There is this deceptive feeling among those who never managed to achieve anything in life, but feel overwhelming pride in the greatness of the nation every time they hear about the victories of athletes or the successes of the military. This is the core of Putin's audience, which said a firm "YES" to the invasion of Ukraine, and was delighted with the news of the destruction of cities and the extermination of Ukrainians.

Many of them were directly involved in military events, having entered Ukrainian soil with weapons. It was they who did not hesitate when they got peaceful people out of their homes and shot them on the spot for their resistance, when they raped women and then killed them in front of their children, when they looted in their homes and apartmens so they could finally "live like normal people when it is over".

Many centuries ago, such behavioural norms in the system of international relations were adhered to by the Mongol empire. A militant, oppressive and enslaving force whose basis of existence was the subjugation of the weak. Wherever the horde came, it brought destruction and decay, and instead of progressive development, the Mongol Tatars preferred to steal labor power and technology from the defeated peoples.

In the era of post-industrial society, Russia these days demonstrates to the world the close connection and solidarity with the principles of its geopolitical predecessors. In the twenty-first century, while the civilized world is reducing fuel emissions to preserve the ozone layer of the Earth, the Russians, stuck at the level of medieval thinking, start wars against neighboring states in order to obtain easy prey. After all, it's easier to realize the greatness of your own nation and rob a weaker one than to doubt the greatness of your leader and choose the path of evolution.

But Ukraine will endure and become the last venture of a Russian dictator who has lost touch with reality. Although the overthrow or death of Putin will not change Russia, will not clear the brains of 140 million Russians, and the largest state in the world will not instantly come on the path of humanity and respect for democratic values.

The Russian system of government has taken deep roots, and already now the FSS, which many years ago concentrated full power in its hands, assesses the risks and tries to direct all the negativity and responsibility to one single person, who by a fatal decision to attack Ukraine has determined his future. And to separate the Russian people and the politicians who "all these years have been against the war" from the torrent of negativity. The consequences of this war may destroy the federal system of influencing the consciousness of the masses, and it can be a catastrophe for the FSS.

Russian propaganda knows how to not only invent horrors but also to press pity, complaining about widespread hatred of everything Russian. You must have heard of neurolinguistic programming at least once in your life. It is a way of penetrating the human brain and indoctrinating it with the necessary information, with which the FSS has been zombifying millions of people for years, creating a reality that is beneficial to them.

The whole world should understand one simple truth. If we do not destroy the system that created and successfully manipulates the minds of millions of people in Russia, and is committing genocide against the Ukrainian people these days, it will revive after Putin is overthrown and will sooner or later create a new dictator.

Meanwhile, Ukrainians, when peace comes, will need to rebuild the country with warm hearts and respond with cool heads to any calls for unity with the Russians.

All of us will hear more than once more about "brotherly nations", "we were scammed" and "we did not want Ukrainians to be killed". When you encounter this, remember the corpse-sown streets of Bucha and the ruins of Mariupol, which buried thousands of innocent victims beneath them. And offer your help in navigating to send a person after the Russian warship.