In late summer 1999, as prime minister, he declared Chechnya’s president Aslan Maskhadov illegitimate and launched an invasion. They were on the verge of independence after having ethnically cleansed Chechnya of Russians and Ukrainians in the first half of the 1990s. In the Caucasus, the Chechens were rebelling for the second time in 10 years. Many died deaths of despair not unlike American working-class whites, while others turned to organized crime to make ends meet. They suffered from high unemployment as state enterprises closed. Working-class Russians were hard hit by acting prime minister Yegor Gaidar’s 1992–1993 “shock therapy” economic reforms. Unscrupulous businessmen were looting the country. Putin came to power in 1999, Russia was in shambles. However, Russia’s president deserves credit where it is due. But an analysis of his record shows that he is no friend of the interests of whites. Many white advocates believe President Vladimir Putin is a kindred spirit on a crusade against the liberal Western establishment and Islam. (Credit Image: © Alexander Demianchuk / TASS via ZUMA Press) Petersburg, Russia: President Vladimir Putin addresses a meeting of the Council of Legislators under the Russian Federal Assembly at the Tauride Palace.
