Non-Russian scandal

Imagine (although in the current circumstances it is not easy) that a certain politician risked greatly offending Mikhail Mikhailovich Fradkov. And so the prime minister invites the director of the FSB to his place and conveys to him a request, not his own, but the president’s, to take this very politician seriously, check his accounts, find incriminating evidence. “So what’s so surprising about this?” – a sophisticated Russian citizen will ask. More than once, domestic law enforcement agencies and special services took pleasure in exterminating Putin’s personal enemies V.V. Let us at least remember the stories with Gusinsky and Khodorkovsky. In general, no one doubts the right of the main Russian boss to use the full power of the state against his political opponents. You won’t envy the president’s opponent in this situation - the court will rubber-stamp any charges, and the president’s offender will face emigration at best, or prison at worst.

You will laugh, but this is not the case everywhere. A political scandal is rapidly developing in France, which could cost Prime Minister Domenic de Villepin his job. He, according to the opposition, invited General Philippe Rondeau, who coordinated foreign intelligence activities in the government, some time ago. On behalf of the president, the prime minister invited him to resume the investigation of the so-called Clearstream case. This is a Luxembourg financial company through which bribes were transferred to the accounts of French politicians in 1991 for the sale of several frigates to Taiwan. The general had no doubt about the purpose of the investigation: “to concentrate on Sarkozy,” he is said to have written in his work diary. De Villepin urgently asked, on behalf of the president, to “take care” of his party comrade and main competitor in future elections, Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy.

Until this moment, everything is one to one, as in our dear fatherland. The differences began later. Having learned about the investigation aimed at him, Sarkozy did not run to the arrow at the Elysee Palace, but (you will laugh again) to court. I wrote the application like a simple, God forgive me, loser. As a result, he proved his innocence. And now a high-ranking general from the special services is being interrogated in court. Moreover, his office is searched and documents are confiscated. And then they conduct a search in the office of the prime minister himself.

Now the prime minister is accused of using (oh horror!) the French state for a “political vendendetta,” that is, to discredit his political opponent. Either today or tomorrow the head of the French government will be forced to go to court in order to answer unpleasant questions from the investigation. The interrogation, according to the French press, may end with a resignation letter. Moreover, if de Villepin manages to evade justice in the next two days, he will face an interrogation on Thursday that will make the trial look like child's play. The prime minister's monthly press conference is scheduled for this day. Going to it means answering questions from journalists for an hour and a half, which are in no way connected either with the secret of the investigation or with a state secret. Refuse – automatically sign the resignation request.

As we see, both the French and our politicians will stop at nothing to drag down a competitor. The difference is that the use of special services (there is no talk of court at all) is a crime for them. Poor fellows, they haven’t matured enough to become a managed democracy.