Tells the Facts and Names the Names april 1-15, 2011 Alexander Cockburn and Jeffrey St. Clair vol. 18, no. 7 “Medvedev vs. Putin” Flat Out Wrong and other Burlesques How the Guardian Stitched Russian Politics after Libya Up Julian Assange By Guy Rundle By Israel Shamir he Arab rebellions have polar- t was the week before Christmas changed with the publication of “10 Days ized Russia: some dream that the 2010… and the attention of the world in Sweden,” an account by Guardian spirit of Tahrir will visit Moscow, was, once again, on Julian Assange, journalist Nick Davies of the events that Teven as others hope for a NATO crusade Ithe endlessly fascinating founder of led to the accusations. Davies had been to spread Western values all the way to Wikileaks. Following the explosive reve- the first Guardian journalist to contact the Volga; yet a third lot prays fervently lations in the Afghan, Iraq and Cablegate Assange, “who had had sporadic contact that nothing will change, now or ever. releases, Assange was now in the spot- with the paper” about the huge tranche The recent Russian abstention in the U.N. light for a different reason. The Swedish of material that would generate the three Security Council has split the elites and prosecution service had issued an arrest separate logs. He had also subsequent- made the growing rift visible at last. warrant to call him back to the country ly fallen out with Assange and ceased President Dmitry Medvedev has de- for further questioning on four accusa- working with him, after accusing him clared Qaddafi persona non grata. He tions of sex crimes (two of sexual assault, of breaking deals on exclusivity with the supported the proposal to transfer Libya’s two of misdemeanor “annoyance”), this paper. But it was Davies who received case to the International Criminal Court; had become an Interpol red notice, and the next Assange/Wikileaks bombshell: he then ordered his ambassador in the the U.K. Crown Prosecution Service were a copy of the long-form police report Security Council to abstain. A few days now acting on it, serving an extradition compiling interview write-ups and tran- later, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin process. On December 7, Assange was scripts with Assange, the two women roundly criticised Medvedev’s compli- denied bail. This was granted after two whose report generated the accusations, ance; he called the Western intervention more hearings, with Assange electroni- and a number of “witnesses” – people “a new crusade,” and suggested that the cally tagged and ordered to reside at the who were around Assange and the two Western leaders should “pray for their Norfolk mansion of Vaughan Smith, women over the week of August 13-20, souls and ask the Lord’s forgiveness” for founder of the war correspondents’ 2010, when the events on which the al- the bloodshed. Medvedev shot back with Frontline Club. legations are based occurred. a meaningless “don’t you dare to speak The initial hearing had rocketed the Davies was the first non-Swedish jour- of crusades” comment, and the pundits sex crime allegations against Assange nalist to get a hold of the report, copies of made a lot of mileage from this exchange, back into the public consciousness after a which had been circulating among vari- eager to see daylight between the twain. lull since they were initially made in early ous Stockholm insiders for a few weeks. Before this, the president and the PM August, 2010, then partly dropped, then Two different versions – one with 12 in- had behaved like Siamese twins. Now, it reinstated at the end of August. Debate terviews and forensics, another with 11 seems they begin to pull apart. about the matter still relied on scraps of interviews and no forensics – were circu- We cannot know what Dmitry disconnected information and hearsay, lating; Davies apparently obtained a copy Medvedev’s actual political views are, much of it aired on the Swedish libertar- of the latter version. The 28,000-word but in recent months he has been pro- ian site Flashback.org. Debate around the document then became the basis for a moted (by a clique of his advisers) as a matter became subject to the Rashomon 2,000-word story – which itself became pro-Western and pro-liberal alternative effect, of multiple accounts: Assange had the basis for much of the discussion of to Putin. Such a vision fits the traditional torn a condom during sex, he had com- the case in the English-speaking world. Russian duality of pro-Western vs. Native mitted sex by surprise, he hadn’t called The Guardian was happy to go along thinking epitomised by Turgenev and someone back, one of the accusers was with Wikileaks’ idea of “scientific jour- Dostoyevsky; to wit, Russia has always a CIA plant, and around and around it nalism,” whereby an article is linked to been part of Europe, and yet Russia has went. the document on which it is based; in this always set itself apart. While this might Then, on December 17, the day after case they went old school, and there was drive a lesser species schizophrenic, the Assange was finally bailed, all that no opportunity to check Davies’ work. shamir continued on page 2 Rundle continued on page 4 april 1-15, 2011 Russians have memorialised this health- the profits from the sale of Russian oil signers, decision-makers and controllers giving tension in the two-headed eagle would go to repair the country’s infra- all in one, applying whatever technology of their coat of arms. There is the native structure, not simply enrich a few oli- they can to the construction of politics head that identifies itself with the non- garchs. The storybook Putin would never as a whole.” The Bulgarian politcal scien- European world and is strictly against allow Russia’s new-found wealth to drain tist, Ivan Krastev, explained, “A political the Libyan war, and then there is the pro- away into the pockets of Londoners like consultant works for one of the parties in Western head that wants to collaborate Mr. Abramovich and his Chelsea football an election and does his best to help that with European powers and shares the team. On the other hand, if Medvedev party win; the political technologist is European system of values, including were a real supporter of Western values, not interested in the victory of his party those that have resulted in the bombard- his police would not break up every dem- but in the victory of ‘the system.’ In other ment of Libya. onstration, and his electoral commissions words, political technologists are those It is very possible that election time would not block opposition parties from in charge of maintaining the illusion of will see Putin challenge Medvedev for entering the fray. competitiveness in Russian politics.” the presidency. Will it be a choice be- Never forget that Medvedev is Putin’s The use of political technology in the tween an independent, sovereign Russia creation, and the former’s ability to stand place of real politics has begun to make going its own way and Russia as a mas- alone is as yet unproven. That is why so Russians extremely cynical and fatalis- sive oil pipeline guarded by yes-men? many Russians doubt the sincerity of tic: whatever move we make, they have So say Putin’s followers. Medvedev’s their low-key, high-profile confrontation. already planned for it and it will be only clique declares that the choice is between The substitution of orchestrated media they who will enjoy the fruits. Russians Russia as a legitimate member of the ci- events in place of real, competitive elec- have begun to believe that political tech- vilised world, and a rogue Russia lost in tions has condemned Russians to democ- nologists are practically omnipotent, and the wilderness, like Qaddafi’s Libya. racy: meaning only the phony, “demo” this belief has made them very power- So far so good, at the very least it version. Despite having an unrestrained ful indeed. For this reason, the éminence sounds like a real choice; but there is a freedom of speech and a near total ab- grise of Russia is neither priest nor oli- catch: the double eagle is not a real beast. sence of repression, Russians are unable garch, but a political technologist named It is only a dream. Putin is not really pro- to elect their rulers according to their Vladislav Surkov, a gifted writer and a native, and Medvedev has not really sold own desires. They are free to speak, but poet of Russian-Jewish-Chechen stock. his soul to the West. Both pretend to their speeches cannot be translated into Some observers consider him to be the be what they hardly are. If Putin were a effective political action. real power behind the cardboard figures real supporter of Russian independence, The man at the helm in the Kremlin of Putin the strongman and Medvedev Russia would not keep its money invest- isn’t elected by the general populace the liberal. This is the view presented ed in U.S. shares and securities. If Putin but is selected by insiders, as it was in in the bestselling novel Virtuoso, by really cared about the future of Russia, Brezhnev’s days. The rule over post-Sovi- Alexander Prochanov, a man with some et Russia passes from leader to leader by first-hand knowledge of Surkov – a rarity, some elite arrangement, rubber-stamped since the great man is media shy. There by a visibly fake popular vote.