O n January 23, 2021, unauthorized protests were held in support of Alexei Navalny in Moscow, St. Petersburg and other cities of Russia. The latter was arrested in the case of Yves Rocher as soon as he arrived in Russia from Germany on January 18.

The protests were then accompanied by the clashes between the police and protesters. During such events, the level of emotion is quite high in general, and any provocation or misunderstanding can cause riots.

This issue has a background. In 2020, the opposition figure Al. Navalny’s health condition suddenly worsened and he moved to Germany for treatment. The West relate Navalny’s health deterioration to Novichok poisoning and accuse Russian authorities of it.

It is difficult to give professional assessments on the reasons for the deterioration of the oppositional figure’s health condition.  However, we can make the following judgements politically. First, Navalny’s death wasn’t beneficial for the Russian authorities, which would have done more harm to Russia, rather than his activity, as on the one hand, it would sharply aggravate the already difficult West-Russia relations, and on the other hand it would become a reason for large-scale protests inside the country.

Second, if the Russian authorities had indeed poisoned Navalny, then how logical is it to extradite him to Western countries, including for treatment. In that case, the poisoning would undoubtedly be revealed right?

Moreover, Navalny’s film, which investigates the Gelendzhik Palace, the property of which is attributed to President Putin, adds a certain impetus to the protests.

Citizens of all ages and social groups, participate in these protests. It’s difficult to make a clear classification, in order to single out the main groups, who are the main driving force of the protest here. However, according to Russian state media, the number of juveniles involved in the protest was high, which is perceived as intentional to prevent or restrict the actions of law enforcement agencies.

However, we can make the following observations about the protesting masses. Some of them are dissatisfied with their socio-economic conditions, corruption and injustices of the middle and lower official circles. However, we believe that the share of those whose participation in the protests is conditioned by the propaganda carried out on social networks is great.

The data on the number of protesters is also contradictory. For instance, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia reports about 4 thous. participants of the protest, which took place on Pushkinskaya Square, in the center of Moscow. Meanwhile, Reuters news agency, citing eyewitnesses, estimates the number of participants at 10 thous. people. It should be noted that in both cases the data are somewhat subjective due to propaganda considerations. However, even if we take as a basis the data of Reuters, 10 thous. is not a big number for Moscow with a population of more than 12.6 mil.

The reaction of the West to what happened was critical of the Russian authorities, and the main accusation is the use of disproportionate force.

It is also noteworthy, that the protests over Navalny’s name are accompanied by an escalation of the situation in Donbas. Time will show how interconnected are these events. Nevertheless, it should be noted that they are in the context of internal and external pressures against Russia and they have something in common.

The Russian authorities responded to the situation at different levels. According to President Putin, citizens have right to express their position, but it must be within the law. "Everyone has the right to express a point of view that goes beyond the law - it is dangerous, it led to a buildup of society, from which everyone suffers," President Putin said during an online meeting with students of Russian universities. He also commented on Alexey Navalny’s investigation of the Gelendzhik palace. Although the president didn’t watch the film about the palace due to lack of free time, but he leafed through the video parts that his assistant singled out. Vladimir Putin believes that the content of the film is just a rumor, with which they were trying to “brainwash” the Russians.

The member of Federation Council Alexei Pushkov stated that it is necessary to stop paying attention to the opinion of Western leaders about Russia. “In Russia, too much attention is paid to what is written and said about us in the West…This is a relic of the late 1980s-1990s, when the main goal was to please the USA and the West. But it is time to leave this relic in the past”, said Pushkov.

According to Pushkov, Western countries look like judges, who make judgements, while the Russian side is a defendant, who tries to justify. Russia has the right to have its own criteria and assessments of its actions.

Earlier the parliamentarian stated that the main problems in 2021, besides overcoming the pandemic, would include the dictate of Internet giants (Google, YouTube, Facebook and others) and the changes taking place in the United States. The network giants, who won’t follow the requirements of Russian legislation, will be replaced by their own platforms. The development of relations with the United States depends on Russia’s ability to withstand the gradually increasing pressure.

Actually, the Russian authorities are in control of the situation and they will continue to keep it under control. The experience shows that such movements succeed when they are unexpected. Meanwhile, such developments were predictable for the Russian authorities and they were properly prepared for it.