"If we draw parallels between the Russian and Ukrainian political classes, we must acknowledge that our state lags behind Russia in political development. In Ukraine, post-Soviet leaders remain in power. Our head of state is in fact still a factory director. Until recently, a similar situation existed in Georgia, where Shevardnadze was more a former USSR foreign minister than a genuine Georgian leader," said Ukrainian People's Deputy Ihor Hryniv.
"Russia outgrew this stage five years ago and rejected the Soviet legacy. Now Russians have a president who is the embodiment of the 'Russian dream.' This dream consists in the fact that Russia is a mighty 'great' power, which must be headed by a very influential person, an autocrat. It is precisely Vladimir Putin who today best satisfies this idea. But no autocrat is possible without two indispensable things - a jester and a schismatic. Today the Communist Party of the Russian Federation is a kind of schismatic. And Zhirinovsky very successfully plays the role of a vivid entertainer. By the way, the LDPR conducted an extremely bright election campaign, and often people turned on the television with pre-election debates exclusively for his sake. Many citizens who perceive politics as a kind of theater voted for Zhirinovsky in order to preserve intrigue in the State Duma in this way. The protest electorate traditionally voted for the Communist Party. A new force in Russian politics was 'Rodina,' which was created as an alternative to the communists. The success of this political force became possible thanks to the conflict over the Tuzla Spit island. I think representatives of 'Rodina' should erect a monument on the dam in the Kerch Strait, or dismantle this dam stone by stone in memory of the victory," said Hryniv.
Commenting on the possibility of parallels with Ukrainian realities, the representative of 'Our Ukraine' noted that the upcoming presidential elections in Ukraine will be more similar to the Russian race of five years ago, when Putin - the embodiment of the Russian dream - was elected head of state. "Next year Ukrainians will also vote for their dream. It is based on two fundamental ideas. First, it is the ideal of freedom, which is very relevant for Ukraine. Second, it is the idea of well-being, of a prosperous life. Therefore, the next president of Ukraine must be the politician who can give citizens economic independence and ensure a prosperous and peaceful life. In other words, the one who will make wages and pensions higher than in Russia and other CIS states. Such a politician is Viktor Yushchenko - the only one among Ukrainian government officials who has paid citizens their wages and pensions," the People's Deputy is convinced.
At the same time, Ihor Hryniv warns that on the eve of the elections, artificial problems will be brought into society - linguistic, religious, cultural, and so on - which will aim to distract citizens' attention from pressing social issues.