Russia’s political/pandemic update: The light is dim, the tunnel looks longer
It looks as though earlier hopes to contain the spread of the coronavirus within a relatively short time frame evaporated in September. Newly registered cases in Europe (including Russia) started to rise much faster, and in the Americas they remained high, as well. The epidemiological situation in Russia is set to deteriorate considerably in the coming months. Restrictions on movement, as well as some other quarantine measures, will be inevitably tightened in the approaching season of the dark, as shorter days and longer nights is the preferred time of the year for viruses.
The surreal spirit, which is an integral part of politics in almost every country, has returned to the scene as well. Similar to viruses' enjoying a lack of sunshine and ultraviolet rays, lack of transparency and secrecy is also a preferred environment for politicians. Hence, looking at the available numbers, such as opinion polls, and checking to see if they contradict or match one another, is more important relative to what politicians say, not least because these messages are often filtered or interpreted by the media, which seldom present an unbiased picture.
In the aftermath of the Navalny case and the Belarussian elections, the split between Russia and the West can only widen and will be rubber-stamped by the likely victory of Mr. Biden in the US presidential election. Not to waste time, Russia has nothing to do but to focus on domestic economic issues and reduce its diplomatic activity, including its relations with the West. Not only tackling the pandemic problem, but also improving relations with the West may take longer than was initially hoped. The latter could take decades.
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