Prominent Russian entrepreneur and philanthropist Ruben Vardanyan recently made a remarkable statement, about which the Russian “Vedomosti” newspaper reported on the day of the 25th anniversary of Armenia’s independence on 21 September. Certainly, Mr. Vardanyan’s non-political speech at first glance is addressed to Russia. He says that the country – Russia – is facing a number of challenges, which need to be answered and answered as a country. First of all, it is the demography. According to R. Vardanyan, the Russian market is small, and therefore, it is necessary to be integrated into the global market, otherwise, Russia is awaiting huge economic crises. Secondly, a serious change of generations is expected, thirdly, the country needs a lot more money to hold reforms. While Russia does not and will not have that much money “even if it sells all the oil, gas, water and also the forest.”
Finally, Ruben Vardanyan mentions the issue of business efficiency as an inevitable challenge; the business should undergo restructuring: the cash flows must shift into a real business, to the dividends, capitalization must take place, otherwise “we will not have a future, we will not be effective.”
Certainly, it is difficult to expect that the Russian leadership will be guided by such visions about the future, especially since these individuals reminding us of the heroes of Gogol’s “Dead Souls” and Dostoevsky’s “The Brothers Karamazov”, or better to say, the anti-heroes, have repeatedly given diametrically opposite assessments even to the current situation. And their assessments make the base of official propaganda, according to which Russia is “big”, “rich”, “the first one”, “self-sufficient” and “right”, while the integration to the world is viewed as a threat to “Russian spiritual values.”
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Therefore, Ruben Vardanyan’s call cannot but have a political connotation, for Moscow’s both domestic and foreign policy is oriented first of all to the isolation of country’s society from the world. In addition, what we call a change of generation, the Russian authorities visualize it at their own. He imagines the inevitable heritage as a transfer to own and close heirs everything that belongs to this circle as a result of perfect “victory” of “mafia capitalism”. And the remaining must stay and wait for their “spiritual” grace, in spite of “immoral West.” This “oil-gas-water-forest” belongs to this narrow circle, which as it turns out is nothing in terms of overcoming the challenges.
The concept paper presented by Ruben Vardanyan is a challenge in itself to the Russian oligarchic system, with all its components, including the official propaganda, which is directed to the domestic consumption. And not only. The statement of the Armenian origin Russian entrepreneur which was dissemination by the Russian media on the day of the 25th anniversary of Armenia’s independence on 21 September is extremely remarkable also in the Armenian context.
Accordingly, Russia that is “rich in everything” is not rich at all, the “170 million market” for which the Armenian oligarchs were “praying” is not self-sufficient and is not capable of ensuring the overcoming of expected inevitable challenges. His characterized attributes to Russian “business”, in particular about its efficiency and competitiveness, complement the visualization that is formed in Armenia about how “efficiently” the Russian monopolists in Armenia are working in the most important branches of the Armenian economy.
Given also, as they say, the current political moment when the Government of Armenia is changed, new ministers are appointed, the new prime minister promises new programs, and the country is facing similar challenges, certainly, by “local peculiarities” and given Ruben Vardanyan’s broad involvement in social processes in Armenia, the second addressee of his remarkable statement is outlined. It is the Republic of Armenia, the authorities, political field and the society.
It is not necessarily for R. Vardanyan or someone else asks in an open text in this context that “to whom we integrate, and if so, what is our task there.” However, it would be correct for the political forces having submitted a claim to take part in the upcoming elections and the society to readdress the question of what they intend to do when Russia does not have any idea but also resources to overcome the challenges, which are just inevitable. It is also clear that it is not going to overcoming, and without overcoming, this country will simply remain “under” these challenges as it has happened two times in the last two hundred years but this time, it seems like forever.
While the problem in our country is well known: the EaEU-CSTO-CIS and “Gazprom”-“Rosneft”-Russian Railways handed to the ownership of Putin’s officials of Cheka are not only able to solve the problem but are a problem by themselves, while the business flagmen in Armenia with their overwhelming majority carry the “cave” ideas typical to the Russian business, and to speak here of the efficiency, future and competitiveness… And as for the rest how the Armenian representative of Russian big business explained the best or not, as it is written in the book , “Who hath ears to hear let him hear. ”
Ruben MEHRABYAN
In the photo: Ruben Vardanyan and former US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice (RIA Novosti 25.03.2011)
