A key aide to the Russian president has declared that the country is entering “100 years of solitude” after a final break with the West
There is no doubt that Vladislav Surkov is one of President Putin’s most influential advisers. He has been a key figure behind the Russian leader's two-decade rule over Russia propping him up at every turn.
Now, and significantly, Surkov has warned that Russia had to stop lying to itself about its identity. He referred specifically to the annexation of Crimea in 2014.
About the annexation, Mr Surkov wrote in an essay:
“The event is the conclusion of Russia’s epic journey towards the West, the ending of numerous fruitless attempts to become part of western civilisation, to inter-marry with the ‘good family’ of European nations.”
Billions of dollars were wiped off the value of Russian stocks on international markets and the rouble slid after the US imposed sanctions on several oligarchs and businesses on Friday.
However, Russia plans to hit back. It said yesterday it planned to retaliate. “It is a rule of the game: there should be an appropriate answer to any unfriendly step,” Mikhail Bogdanov, the deputy foreign minister, said.
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