Kremlin allies have called for
Vladimir Putin to be addressed as the country’s ‘Ruler’ rather than
his current title ‘President’.
The Liberal Democratic
Party (LDPR) has suggested the use of Pravitel, a Russian title, as it is
more befitting of Putin’s status and role.
The right-wing party has 22
seats out of the 450 in the country’s parliament and is currently used by the
Kremlin to gently float its more radical ideas and garner evidence on their
popularity.
It comes as Russia continues
to push for substitutes for products, brands and words from the West amid
sanctions due to its invasion of Ukraine in February.
The LDPR has argued in Russian
media that Putin’s current ‘President’ title was actually first coined in the
US in the 18th century, The Telegraph reports, and Pravitel should be used
instead despite its autocratic connotations.
Putin attended the funeral of
the party’s former leader Vladimir Zhirinovsky died in April, such were his
close links to the Kremlin.
On December 22, 2021,
Zhirinovsky told MPs in a speech that the invasion would start on 22 February,
though it actually began on the evening of February 23, and heralded a ‘new
direction in Russian foreign policy’.
It was Zhirinovsky’s last
speech in the State Duma and his disappearance came amid rumours he had annoyed
the Kremlin by announcing an invasion that Putin wanted to keep quiet about.
Zhirinvosky was known for
provocative stunts and anti-Western tirades that kept him in the public eye for
more than three decades.
Pravitel has deep and
historical connections in Russia, with the Romanov family having near total
control the country as Tsars from 1613 to 1917.
Tsar can also carry a similar
meaning to Pravitel, but it is more commonly known as ’emperor’.
But ‘president’ was only
picked up towards the end of the Soviet Union, when Mikhail Gorbachev was
identified as its president.
Before then, leaders of the
USSR had instead been known as Communist Party Chairman or General Secretary.
Critics of Putin have argued
that he already has total power in Russia and rules as an autocratic Tsar.
It comes as Putin is
‘preparing fresh attacks in Ukraine as he moves reserves across Russia to
Ukraine border’, the British Ministry of Defence reports after Kremlin warned
fighting ‘hasn’t started in earnest yet’.
‘Russia is moving reserve
forces from across the country and assembling them near Ukraine for future offensive
operations,’ defence sources said today.
However, they claimed that
Russia’s kit is antiquated and dilapidated, adding: ‘Many of its reinforcements
are ad hoc groupings, deploying with obsolete or inappropriate
equipment.’
