An important opposition figure to Putin declared the British environment That many Russian elites consider that the peace plan of the president of the US, Donald Trump, is “generous” and demand the end of the war. The elites of the Kremlin are “extremely unhappy” with the Russian president for his refusal to accept Trump’s peace proposals, he added.
The White House presented its peace plan for Ukraine in spring, hoping to convince the Kremlin to end the invasion, unleashed by the Russian president in February 2022. Trump’s proposals contemplated the recognition of iure by the United States of Russian control over Crimea, as well as acceptance in fact of the current occupation by Moscow of four Ukrainian regions: Luhansk, Donetsk, Jersón and Zaporiyia.
In addition, the White House has ruled out the adhesion of Ukraine to NATO and has promised to lift the sanctions imposed on Russia since 2014. Trump also promised greater economic cooperation with Russia, especially in the energy and industrial sectors.
However, the Chief of Kremlin has repeatedly hindered the attempts to negotiate the fire and has intensified the Russian attacks against Ukraine. While, the refusal to consider US proposals has generated outrage in many Russian elites.
Ilya Ponomarev, a prominent figure of the opposition to Putin with close links with many Russian elites, told the British newspaper that patience was running out among some of the most loyal and powerful supporters of Kremlin. “The Russian elites are extremely unhappy because Putin does not accept Trump’s offer,” he said. “And that was very clearly in the Economic Forum of St. Petersburg. In fact, they are telling Putin stories that the Russian economy is about to fall into recession, which I do not think it is true,” he added.
Russian elites have been increasingly seen in the sight of the Kremlin in a minipurga, and their assets are under increasing threat of confiscation. The Kremlin has reappropriate properties of Russian companies worth 49.5 billion dollars, according to Bloomberg.
Given this, when Ponomarev was asked if the elite purge could lead to an attempt to overthrow Putin, the former Russian deputy and businessman said: “I think, you already know, after a while, it could evolve in that direction.”
However, he added that it was unlikely that this happened soon, because there were still more winners than losers in the system. “What is happening is, in fact, a redistribution of property,” he explained, adding: “Putin takes something away from those who have fallen out of favor, but in the end that will stop at the hands of those who enjoy favor.”
