Putin, pretending that nothing is happening, invites foreign countries to take part in the new Kremlin holiday — the “Games of the Future”, which will be held in Kazan in February, 21 – March, 3, 2024. And all these against the background of daily news from Ukraine about the progress of the war waged by the Russians against the Ukrainians, reports about the death of thousands of Russian soldiers on the battlefield, as well as missile attacks on the civilian population in Ukraine.
The Kremlin’s plan is ambitious, namely to create an international platform to attract, first, foreign participants to participate in tournament of the so-called “hybrid disciplines” with elements of sports (classical sports like football and hockey combined with cybersports). Russian organizers have announced 16 types of competitions, 2,000 participants from more than 100 countries, as well as their intention to popularize the event by streaming it all over the world.
Are the Russian authorities really care so much about the cebersports development of youth, and not only their own, but also foreign ones so that they are ready to allocate (according to some estimates) more than 100 million US dollars? Giving the traditional domestic and foreign policy of official Moscow, here there is an exclusively pragmatic approach, as always, which has nothing to do with cultural or physical development.
The “Games of the Future” is primarily aimed at young people, foreign youth, because the main focus of the event is cybersports, which is usually an object of interest for the younger generation. “A feast in time of plague” is an expression that fits the description of this action best.
The traditions of the Soviet KGB and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs exist and develop in modern Russia. Therefore, the Kremlin’s idea of an annual international platform (against the background of the active phase of the predatory war against Ukraine) and the mobilization of its own economy and society is nothing more than an attempt to create a tool for whitening Russia’s reputation, which is constantly being destroyed in the eyes of the international community. There is no doubt that the results of this international event will be used in the interests of Russian state propaganda, which always helps the Russian military industry, the key goal of which is to kill Ukrainians and seize their land.
Using the “Games of the Future,” Moscow wants to dignify its country before foreign partners, to show foreigners that this is a country of opportunity, cultural, spiritual, scientific and technological prosperity. The Kremlin’s intention is clear. Cynicism is an integral part of Russian society. But how will the participation in the “Games” affect the lives of those participants from other countries who decide to respond to the invitation? It is no secret that, despite the crimes committed in Ukraine by the Russian authorities and its citizens, official Moscow has a great lobby in post-Soviet countries and individual EU members.
To understand the dilemma that may face a foreigner participating in the “Games”, one should understand the reputational damage that he/she may receive in the eyes of the authorities and society not only in Ukraine, but also in other countries that support Ukraine in its struggle against Russian intervention.
The organizers of the “Games” will definitely be able to attract foreign participants, but the fact is that the vast majority of them will be citizens of countries with an autocratic regime or a government dependent on the political will of the Kremlin. Can citizens of civilized democratic countries afford to be in such a society, thereby supporting it in the international arena?
The “Games of the Future” are funded entirely from the Russian state budget or from state-owned enterprises such as Gazprom. It should be remembered that Russia is not only a sponsor of the “Games”, but also a country sponsor of terrorism, according to the PACE resolution from October 13, 2022. Will participation in an event like this be a tacit support of Russian policy?
In the end, the “Games of the Future” announced by the Kremlin are positioned as a holiday for the young people, but it is worth remembering what lies behind its bright picture — the war crimes of the Russians, which actually deprived millions of Ukrainian children of the opportunity to live a happy childhood, who are forced to spend a significant part of their time in shelters in the time of daily threats of missile attacks or Iranian UAV strikes on peaceful cities in Ukraine. Currently, 511 children have died from Russian aggression in Ukraine, and more than 1,100 have been injured. This is only an official data, which does not consider the victims in the Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine, for example, such as the city of Mariupol, where, according to experts, more than 100 thousand civilians were killed by the Russians.
In fact, one gets a clear impression of the world of the future as the Kremlin sees it – a world where people’s lives are worth nothing, and they can do whatever they want.