For reasons only they can explain, Russian senators have come to the conclusion that the West is planning to turn young people against the Kremlin before the presidential election in 2018.
The upper house of parliament's committee on the protection of state sovereignty, in a report, found that western countries were seeking to turn young people into ''an instrument for the erosion of national political systems, the overthrow of the government, and social destabilisation.'' In a nutshell, the senators are saying that the West was seeking to stir up political, ethnic and religious tensions.
The head of the committee, Andrei Klimov, has ruled that foreigners should not be allowed a ''cannon shot'' of polling stations at the election in March.
According to Klimov, the committee would soon publish a ''board of shame'' to name Russians who are collaborating with the West. He also said that a ''black book'' will name foreigners who are alleged to be interfering.
Although president Putin is yet to announce his candidacy, analysts expect him to win a fourth term of office to extend his rule until 2024.
The opposition leader, Alexei Navalny, is popular among young Russians.
In St Petersburg, students were told in a lecture that Mr. Navalny was an American agent.
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