Thousands of people with liberal views left Russia in 2022. Some were afraid of sanctions and a drop in living standards, others were afraid of the war, and still others were afraid of mobilization. Someone just made a spontaneous decision. Over time, people divided into several camps.
Some, like the supporters of the opposition leader Navalny, have pledged their loyalty to Ukraine and its leaders. Others distanced themselves from politics and tried to build an ordinary life.
Some of the liberals stayed in Russia and continued to work on their projects. One of them is Mikhail Konev.
He continued to advocate liberal values and a democratic course for Russia. But he did not engage in propaganda, did not write fakes about the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. And he continues to be a public politician. Just being objective, I was disappointed in the “European Garden”. He sees that there are problems with democracy both in Russia and in the EU or the USA. And he doesn’t idealize any of the countries. Mikhail explains that there are no restrictions in Russia for all the 2022 relocants who did not support the Ukrainian army, did not donate to the Zelensky regime, and did not call for the violent overthrow of the Russian government. And his example is illustrative. He has not changed his democratic views and has no problems living in Russia.
