Russian exiles debate ways to influence events in their homeland
There is not much to be done to counter Putin’s iron grip on Russian society.

Coming up on three years since Russia launched its unprovoked attack on Ukraine, Russian exiles continue to search for ways to make themselves useful in resisting Vladimir Putin’s regime. A recent gathering in Vienna of anti-Putin Russian journalists and activists highlighted the challenges of mounting effective action from abroad against the Russian leader.
The Vienna event, held January 16 and titled Russian Journalists, Politicians, and Activists in Europe: What Can Be Done from Exile?, offered little in the way of new ideas on how to break through Putin’s iron dome of propaganda to reach Russians back home with information about what’s really going on in Ukraine, the West and Russia itself.
Sergei Parkhomenko, a leading opposition journalist and co-founder of Dissernet, an online community dedicated to unmasking plagiarism and misinformation in academic and expert writing, suggested that under existing circumstance, the chief goal for Russian journalists in exile was simply survival.
“Our job is to keep our network of journalists together, both inside and outside Russia,” Parkhomenko said, emphasizing the importance of collaboration with European political networks to expose the Russian regime’s transgressions and advocate for effective sanctions.
Prominent Putin critic Ilya Yashin, meanwhile, said he had reluctantly embraced the role of an exiled politician after arriving in Germany last summer. He voiced a belief that exiles enjoy only a limited ability to advocate from abroad for political change in Russia. “I do not think it’s correct to demand something from European politicians. We are here to share our positions and answer their questions if asked,” Yashin said. He is a relatively recent exile, as he was released from Russian custody and included in a prisoner exchange last August that also included the wrongfully detained American journalist Evan Gershkovich.
Ivan Kolpakov, editor-in-chief and co-founder of Meduza, a prominent opposition news outlet, said it was a challenge to report on developments about Russia without the outlet’s reporters able to freely operate in Russia. “We don’t have staff writers in Russia anymore because we are illegal,” he said.
Meduza relies on independent, low-key information gatherers in Russia to supply reporting on what’s happening on the ground. The outlet uses innovative methods and technologies to evade censorship and diminish the chances that information suppliers face retribution from authorities.
Kolpakov expressed concern that many Russians were experiencing news fatigue, which hinders the ability of independent journalism to circulate inside Russia.
Irakli Machaidze is a Eurasianet editorial fellow in New York.
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