'Modern-day Tsar' Putin's Greatest Crisis

Thousands of Weekend Protesters Arrested... Western Countries Including the US Announce Additional Sanctions
Navalny Release Protests Enter 2nd Week
Public Discontent Grows Amid Economic Recession

On the 31st (local time), thousands of citizens participated in a march demanding the release of opposition leader Alexei Navalny in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Saint Petersburg (Russia) = Photo by Reuters

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Suhwan] Over the past weekend, protests demanding the release of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny entered their second week, resulting in the arrest of thousands. Amid an economic crisis in Russia and escalating daily demonstrations, Western countries including the United States have announced additional sanctions against Russia, placing President Vladimir Putin in a precarious position.

According to foreign media on the 31st (local time), protests calling for Navalny's release and President Putin's resignation took place in major cities including Moscow, the Russian capital, leading authorities to arrest at least 5,045 people, with around 1,600 detained in Moscow alone. Russian human rights organization OVD-Info stated that this is the highest number of arrests of protesters since they began compiling statistics in 2011. This is interpreted as Putin responding strongly due to a sense of crisis.

Russian police had declared all acts of participation in the protests illegal ahead of the demonstrations and warned of strict measures against participants. The Ministry of Internal Affairs also labeled the protests as unauthorized assemblies and urged citizens not to participate. To prevent gatherings, seven subway stations in central Moscow and streets around the Kremlin, the president’s residence, were closed. German media outlet Deutsche Welle reported that "such measures by Russian authorities represent an unprecedentedly harsh response."

In response, Western countries including the United States demanded an end to the crackdown on Navalny protesters and called for Navalny’s release. On the same day, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken condemned the harsh repression on Navalny’s supporters via Twitter and demanded the release of Navalny and others unlawfully detained. British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab also joined the criticism of Putin, strongly urging the Russian government to protect citizens’ right to assemble.

The Russian government, accusing external forces of interfering in the protests, pushed back against Western criticism. The Russian Foreign Ministry issued a statement claiming, "The U.S. government is intervening to incite the protests," calling it "a clear case of internal interference."

The West, led by the United States, has declared its intention to tighten sanctions on Russia following Navalny’s arrest. U.S. President Joe Biden announced plans to respond firmly to Putin’s "criminal acts" in solidarity with allies, shortly after allegations surfaced regarding an attempted poisoning of Navalny. The U.S. ambassador to Russia appeared on local Russian media the same day, stating plans to strengthen sanctions imposed since Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014.

The European Union (EU) also stated that if Navalny is not released, discussions on the "next phase of sanctions" will commence. Josep Borrell, the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, announced plans to visit Russia within the month to discuss "all related matters."

Economic sanctions from Western countries have deepened the recession, amplifying public dissatisfaction with the government. According to the Moscow Times, disposable income for Russian citizens has decreased by more than 10% from 2014 to last year. The year 2014 marks the start of Western sanctions following Russia’s annexation of Crimea.

The New York Times (NYT) reported, "Due to sanctions, Russia has experienced a prolonged recession over the past seven years, accumulating public discontent against the Putin administration," adding that "Navalny’s arrest has further fueled this public sentiment."

Meanwhile, Navalny’s camp has described the protests as "successful" and announced plans for another large-scale demonstration on the 2nd. This date coincides with a court hearing to decide whether to convert Navalny’s suspended sentence, related to embezzlement charges from 2014, into a prison term.

Alexei Navalny Photo by EPA Yonhap News

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.