For Alexey Navalny, who opposes Putin, Ukraine has always been a very unstable problem.
2 min read 2023-10-27, 04:00 PM IST
The book “The Dissident: Alexey Navalny, Profile of a Political Prisoner” will be released on October 31st. The book is published by Twelve, a part of Hachette Book Group.
Alexey Navalny is a well-known person in Russia who has spoken out against Vladimir Putin’s leadership more bravely than anyone else in politics. He has strongly condemned Russia for invading Ukraine and wants Russian troops to leave and pay for the damages. It is important to mention that he is half Ukrainian.
Some people in Ukraine are unsure about Navalny and don’t always like him because of his position on Ukraine. The reason for this apparent disagreement is because of his complicated feelings towards Ukraine, which is similar to how many Russians with Ukrainian heritage feel.
Navalny and many other Russians with Ukrainian roots have seen Putin’s actions in Ukraine as a very sad and violent incident. He had to rethink and explain his earlier remarks that seemed to underestimate the importance of Ukraine as a nation. He believes that Russians, Ukrainians, and Belarusians are basically the same group of people. He also says that when Putin took control of Crimea, it was unfair because a Soviet leader had given it to Ukraine, even though it should really be a part of Russia.
In 2011, Navalny said that it would be nice if Ukraine and Belarus were part of the same country as Russia. He thought it would happen eventually, but this view has made it difficult for him to find common ground with Ukraine and create unity between the two countries. A lot of Ukrainians see the conflict as a fight not just against Putin, but also against a forceful, controlling mindset that is deeply rooted in the Russian people, even among those who support freedom and democracy, like Navalny.
Navalny says he doesn’t think this way, but he struggles to combine his beliefs with trying to present himself as a good alternative to Putin. He once said very clearly, “I am both Russian and Ukrainian,” and denied having any biases against any ethnic groups. He wants to avoid feeling like he is less important than others.
Navalny is caught not just in jail but also in a complicated tangle of different roles he plays. He feels very upset about the war happening in the country where he used to visit his grandparents during summer as a child. At the same time, he struggles to find ways of expressing his beliefs without upsetting Russian voters who could potentially vote for him in the future as their president. However, his chances of becoming the Russian president are becoming less likely because his health is getting worse while he is in a very tough prison. As of now, he is scheduled to be released in 2051, which is the year he will be 75 years old.
Excellent write-up