In a ‘Revolutionary Development,’ Moscow has Succeeded in Getting Russians to View the State ‘as a Service,’ Central Bank Chief Says

Paul Goble

            Staunton, Feb. 4 – The state is now viewed by Russians “as a service,” Central Bank chief Elvira Nabiullina says, a development that “marks the completion of another stage in the evolution of relations between society and the authorities” and a truly “revolutionary” one at that.

            The Club of the Regions reports her remark and says that it reflects what the Kremlin has been trying to do for some time given that it is “not satisfied with the role of just a regulator” but wants to be perceived as a servant, something that Club experts say strengthens the Putin regime while forestalling any challenges to it (club-rf.ru/theme/637).

            While the Putin regime casts its initiative in this regard as a way of “meeting the demands of the citizens in the 21^st century,” in fact, what it has been doing that Nabiullina has called attention to, is the creation of a platform supporting the government. In short, “by making life easier for te average citizen, the state is simultaneously solving its own problems.”

            According to the Club experts, “the state is creating an ecosystem in which it ceoms the chief trusted source of information for millions of its citizens,” “creating an alternative to elections,” and ensuring that those unhappy with particular situations can be offered things of value if they show loyalty and do not protest.

            So far, the Club suggests, this effort has brought the Kremlin enormous success. Whether it will have the resources and will to extend it remains to be seen.