After Putin – what?
Journal: Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists
Year: 2022

By calling for Putin’s removal from power, Western officials and scholars magnify Russian historic fears of a state collapse. Worse, they magnify them by fueling the Kremlin propaganda machine and reinforcing Russians’ reluctance to turn against their regime. Still, Putin will inevitably have to go someday. When that day arrives, however, it is all but clear what the future for Russia will be. Will Russia after Putin necessarily collapse? Or will Putin’s successor turn to the West with a plea fo