Paul Goble
The Russian Federation faces an increasingly serious shortage of police despite having more police per capita than any other major country—almost twice as many per capita as the European Union and two and a half times more than the United States. More and more officers are leaving the force before retirement, and fewer men are willing to sign up (V Krizis.ru, March 5). This development is particularly worrisome to the Russian people and Russian rulers, both of whom remember how rapidly rising crime can grow into a political threat. Notably, more experts predict a new crime wave as veterans of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war against Ukraine return home (VKrizis.ru, March 30, 2021, March 5, 2023; see EDM, November 29, 2022, January 29, 2024, February 25; Novoye Vremya, March 6).
Russians are taking things into their own hands, arming themselves and forming various kinds of self-defense forces (see EDM April 11, 2017, November 29, 2022; Kavkazii Uzel, July 30, 2024; Window on Eurasia, November 11, 2024). Unsurprisingly, the Kremlin views these as potentially threats and in most cases has worked to repress them. In some cases, however, Russia’s rulers feel they have no choice but to cooperate with them to prevent violent crime from rising any further (Kasparov.ru, March 14, 2024). Putin is now speaking out about the dangers the shortage of police represents, but he has not taken any meaningful steps to address it as doing so would require taking resources, money, and men, away from his invasion of Ukraine (Vkrizis.ru, March 5).
No comments:
Post a Comment