How Russia reacted to the death of Mikhail Gorbachev

‘Some will say he bought us freedom. Others that he took our country. Mikhail Gorbachev, one of the most controversial politicians in Russian history, has died.’ This is the verdict of the tabloid Komsomolskaya Pravda - a mixed review of a politician with a mixed record. And one reflected in a Russian press which today reads rather differently to the British.

The broadsheet Izvestia’s long obituary had a pitiful verdict: ‘A communist who buried the idea of communism six feet under (most likely against his own wishes), and the leader of a great country who helplessly watched it collapse.’ Ria Novosti, another state-backing news agency, hones in on the divide in western and Russian opinion, snarkily remarking that it ‘wouldn’t be surprising if there were two ceremonies of farewell’ to Gorbachev. One in Moscow and another ‘somewhere in London, with the participation of our emigrants, confident in their belief that Gorbachev “gave freedom to Russia and the whole world”.’ And Gorbachev’s legacy? ‘We are still disentangling the fruits of his catastrophic rule and will continue to correct its consequences for a long time to come’.

Most independent media outlets have been chased out of Russia and now operate abroad. The anti-Kremlin Novaya Gazeta set up in part using funds from Gorbachev’s Nobel Prize winnings in 1993, carries a glowing tribute by the paper’s editor-in-chief. Melancholy in tone, the piece praises Gorbachev’s peaceful ambitions and liberal principles: ‘He gave us thirty years of peace. But such gifts are no more.’

1/6 Prison radio reported the death of Mikhail Gorbachev. It was under his rule that the last political prisoners were released in the USSR.

— Alexey Navalny (@navalny) August 31, 2022

Alexei Navalny, the opposition politician staunchly critical of Putin’s regime, released his own tribute to Gorbachev from behind bars at the maximum security prison in Russia where he is serving time on supposed embezzlement charges. Acknowledging that he was initially opposed to Gorbachev’s policies, this soon evolved into ‘sad respect’: ‘Gorbachev remained one of the very few who did not use power and opportunities for personal gain and enrichment. I am sure that his life and history, which were pivotal to the events of the late 20th century, will be evaluated far more favorably by posterity than by contemporaries.’