Why individual Russians do not feel responsible for war in Ukraine

In Russian concepts, there is no such thing as a human being; there is only the government and the people. That is why they do not understand Ukraine, they do not understand Europe and America.

Because of this, Russians are fundamentally unable to understand that each of them bears a share of collective responsibility for the war. No responsibility means no remorse. No remorse means no way out of the vicious circle.

The system will generate authoritarianism and war again and again. No matter who is president - Putin or Navalny, Yeltsin or Brezhnev, Khodorkovsky or Patrushev. The system lacks a basic setting, and it will not be installed even in a few generations.

The only way out is to change the system itself, to change its identity. The Russian Empire is not capable of changing, but the emergence of independent Tatarstan, young democratic Siberia, basic democratic Bashkortostan, Sharia Dagestan, oligarchic Ugra, and pro-European Ingria on its territory will turn the page and start a new history.

Source

About the author. Valeriy Pekar, lecturer at the Kyiv-Mohyla Academy

The editors do not always share the opinions expressed by the blog authors.