It is doubtful that generals in the Russian army could mobilize to overthrow dictator Vladimir Putin, said Member of the European Parliament and political scientist Ivars Ijabs (from Latvijas attīstībai) in an interview with the LETA news agency.
In his view, there are certainly individuals within the armed forces who do not think highly of Putin and are not enthusiastic about his regime, but these are not people capable of organizing themselves collectively.
The MEP believes that generals would be afraid even to discuss the possibility of overthrowing Putin, because if someone reported such conversations to the security services, it would mean the end of their life and career.
“Even if a general gathered the courage to approach another with such an idea, the other would most likely assume it was a provocation
—and would report it to security services. We should not have illusions about the mentality that has developed in Russia,” Ijabs said.
At the same time, the politician does not completely rule out the possibility that generals could overthrow Putin. “Such a possibility cannot be excluded. In fact, it is good that we do not know about it—if we did, it would already be over,” the MEP noted.
He also argued that Russia is clearly moving toward a development scenario similar to that of North Korea—a state that is fully closed off and aggressive toward the outside world.
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