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Russia's new prime minister since January Mikhail Mishustin reports to his boss Putin that he has come down with Coronavirus & delegates his job to first deputy PM Andrei Belousov. At least he did not fall out of a window as to top physicians.
kremlin.ru/events/preside…
Putin's response is just what dictators say:
1. What happened to you can happen to anyone of us (but it does not).
2. Compulsory wish of good health.
3. Thanking for his suggestion of (temporary) replacement (Putin's man).
4. "Call me when you come to the hospital!"
Needless to say, Putin instantly issued a decree naming his former close aid Belousov acting PM. This is just like out of Charlie Chaplin's "The Great Dictator."
kremlin.ru/events/preside…
A good friend just pointed out that when Saddam Hussain appointed somebody to a high post, the habit developed to congratulate and present condolences at the same time, as appointment & death tended to be all too close in time. Putin is catching up with his late friend.
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Anders Åslund
@anders_aslund
"It is one thing to be powerless in the face of a natural disaster, quite another to watch vast power being squandered in real time – wilfully, malevolently, vindictively."
irishtimes.com/opinion/fintan…
"It is one thing for governments to fail (as, in one degree or another, most governments did), quite another to watch a ruler and his supporters actively spread a deadly virus. Trump, his party and Rupert Murdoch’s Fox News became vectors of the pestilence."
"The grotesque spectacle of the president openly inciting people (some of them armed) to take to the streets to oppose the restrictions that save lives is the manifestation of a political death wish."
Read 6 tweets
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Anders Åslund
@anders_aslund
Criminal investigations are underway against 3 Western-supported reformers ousted in recent weeks from key posts. Yesterday, agents of the State Security Service, or SBU, searched the apartment of Serhiy Verlanov, who was ousted two weeks ago as head of the new Tax Service. (UBN)
Separately, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine, or NABU, have started a pre-trial investigation against Maksym Nefyodov, former head of the new Customs Service.
The Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office has opened “criminal proceedings” against Ruslan Ryaboshapka, ousted in early March as Prosecutor General. According to anti-corruption activists in Kyiv, all three men had cut off corrupt cash flows, triggering reprisals. (UBN)
Read 3 tweets
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Anders Åslund
@anders_aslund
Today @washingtonpost's investigative journalists skewer Kushner coronavirus effort said to be hampered by inexperienced volunteers. Pretty devastating.
washingtonpost.com/politics/kushn…
"the team responsible for PPE had little success in helping the government secure such equipment, in part because none of the team members had significant experience in health care, procurement or supply-chain operations. In addition...
...none of the volunteers had relationships with manufacturers or a clear understanding of customs requirements or Food and Drug Administration rules"
Read 4 tweets

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