Putin’s ‘Besieged Fortress’ and Its Ideological Arms

Abstract

The main ideological ‘tenets’ of Putins third term are state nationalism based on Russia’s greatness and its ‘specialpath’; an aggressive anti-Western and anti-liberal stance; quasi-traditionalism; the infallibility of the state and Putin as a leader of no alternative; and intolerance toward autonomous activism, civic or political. The annexation of Crimea as historically and culturally ‘our’ land and Putin’s determination to support ‘ours’ in eastern and southeastern Ukraine inevitably boosts the existing ethnic nationalism. Meanwhile, the Kremlin remains evasive and controversial as regards some of the basic ideological issues, such as national identity, the perception of the past or national heroes. The current consensus may be deceptive, Putin’s over 80 per cent approval rating and broad approval of his policies notwithstanding.