How about answering a somewhat baffling question:
Why do Russian elites still hold the West in high regard and are hell-bent on going to Europe come what may?
The world that has imposed unprecedented restricted on these “nice guys.”
Booted out of the front door, they’re prying open the side window. They’re filing lawsuits to get their assets back.
They’ve been sanctioned, but the next thing you know is their kids suddenly owning all that improbable goodness.
By the looks of it, an uber-rich Moscow resident will be bored to death by European life.
Once the clock strikes 10PM, it’s all over. No round-the-clock entertainment.
Posh restaurants can only be booked for lunch and dinner.
No fast deliveries, be it a washing machine or a large hadron collider, minutes after you’ve paid online.
When it comes to everyday life, Europe’s arcane labor legislation, welfare payments,
and age-old traditions that sometimes make things even more complicated than
they can be isn’t your surefire go-to destination.
Let’s bracket China, a too exotic choice for permanent residence.
But there’s the giant Middle East region with its oil-backed monarchies that’s often marketed
as a place where the uber-rich can splurge their fortunes as they please.
What’s the big deal about Europe?
Who cares about a modest Lake Como villa if you can’t even buy a bottle of water
to kick back lakeside in the evening.
How about the luxurious palaces and postcard-view skyscrapers with 24/7 service?
Doesn’t it make sense? Well, it does, and it doesn’t.
The reality is, despite what many post-Soviet people may think, the Western world isn’t exactly about comfort.
These countries have one advantage that’s not going to be Dubai’s or Qatar’s selling point anytime soon.
MIDDLE EAST
The past few decades have been a time of — for want of a better term — liberal monarchs.
They are targeting economic growth along with new investment and travel opportunities,
while being monarchs nonetheless.
On their watch, Arab societies have seen unheard-of change.
As for the foreigners, the tolerance levels have recently been unprecedented.
In all these countries, immigrants live separately, observe a separate legislation,
and aren’t inconvenienced by Muslim traditions in the slightest.
If you’re undeterred by a life in a concrete jungle that’s only possible with AC cranked up to the max,
the world’s your oyster when it comes to comfort the way we see it.
Restaurants with offering from the world’s top-ranked chefs, the whole gamut of brand stores, lavish hotels,
amazing night clubs, beauty salons, and all sorts of entertainment options — all these are available 24/7.
You’re getting my drift, aren’t you?
If you’re the one who wants to fritter away your stolen loot building the world’s largest palace,
buying the world’s most luxurious condo, and starting a fleet of high-end cars;
if you want to pack five lifetimes of gluttony and entertainment into one,
Dubai is almost purpose-designed to cater to these needs, more so than Paris or Rome.
The taxes you pay are chump change, and no one is bothered by the way you’ve made your fortune.
No one will be looking for your hidden assets — Arab monarchies typically don’t extradite foreign nationals.
It begs the question: Why would you need Europe or the U.S. that are sanctioning you
when Middle Eastern oil-backed monarchies are perfect to hide and spend ridiculous
amounts of unscrupulously earned money.
But there’s a catch.
The Western world isn’t the go-to destination because of the standard of living, luxury,
or a safe tax haven it provides.
The West is increasingly outmatched on these fronts.
The Western world is preferably when it comes to your and your family’s future.
True, modern Arab monarchies may seem nothing short of perfection: no problems, no annoyances,
just pleasure and fun. But that’s the way things stand now.
A considerable part of the Muslim elites are mad about their countries turning into
a no-holds-barred international amusement park or a venue of sin and promiscuity.
Although these countries do offer a lot, something they’re missing is robust political procedures
and institutions as well as the checks and balances. Hence the free rein for local authorities to go berserk.
Let’s say today’s monarch is toast tomorrow.
He’s succeeded by his brother or son who just happens to be an avid Quran reader
who values prayers over the brothel his country has degenerated into.
As soon as he ascends the throne, he’ll be like, “Okay, dear infidels, let’s get it over with.
I want our fundamental faith back. You’ve got 24 hours to pack up and get the hell out of here,
and your time starts now.”
Mind you, this isn’t an unlikely scenario.
It won’t be a stretch to imagine Qatar or the Emirates pulling the plug on their budget concerns
and prioritizing their moral code.
Or consider the opposite scenario. The leading Arab countries will go,
“Investments have been through the roof.
Time to reconsider our status as international gray zones and safe havens for the filthy lucre.
We are no loner interested in any and all investment or residents. We want to command respect.”
It was the case already with multiple OFCs.
And for the Russian elite, it’ll be time to slam on the brakes and make a U-ey.
Other scenarios are on the table, too, where you’ll need to run fast and dodge the bullet intended
to shoot you in the leg.
All expat privileges aren’t backed by institutions or enshrined in the law.
These perks are only dependent on the ruler’s current mood.
The mood changes — and there you’re, out of time and out of options.
WESTERN WORLD
Even now, when Putin’s cronies and top propaganda mouthpieces are neck-deep in sanctions
and are deemed instigators of Europe’s most savage war in 80 years,
they’re still entitled to exercise their rights.
They reach out to top-tier law firms and lodge lawsuits trying to reclaim their property.
And their efforts prove to bear fruit.
Even with the war at its fiercest, some of them manage to get the restrictions lifted,
while others succeed partially.
Even those who reside in foreign countries and are under active investigation,
like billionaire Mikhail Fridman, aren’t locked up.
They live their routine lives, while their lawyers are battling it out with the British justice system.
The Western world isn’t about restaurants and hotels and is no bed of roses.
This crap is easily achievable.
The Western isn’t about top-notch services and Wagyu delicacy steaks ordered
and jetted straight out of Japan in the middle of the night.
The Western world is predictable. Tomorrow, the rules won’t be overturned at the drop of a hat.
The Western world helps you plan your retirement and build future for your kids.
It’s a place where you can plan decades ahead.
If you want to invest in a high-rise and seek to sell the apartments at seven times the initial price,
you don’t give a hoot in hell about this country’s institutions. Your profit far outweighs your risk.
But if you want a safe bet, if you plan a future for yourself and your family,
if you want to be protected by the state as opposed to be hanging by a thread,
a competitive and stable democracy is likely to be your destination of choice.
Yes, everyone there are entitled to their rights.
On the flip side, public transit systems may grind to a halt in the wake of a strike.
A restaurant closes early to avoid paying extra to its employees.
You can’t make a person work overtime on the weekend because they have labor legislation
and efficient trade unions.
You won’t see hordes of Asian workers toiling away for a pound of rice to please the patrons.
Everyone will know they are within their rights to do what they do and have high self-esteem.
A meat packer will call it a day at 6PM sharp, and not even God can tell him otherwise.
And yes, the AC will take two weeks to ship, and not two days.
A mechanic can show up on Friday or Monday because, you know, tomorrow is overrated.
No, you won’t be able to grease someone’s hand, buy your way out, or haggle a deal under the table.
You’ll need to observe everything from road rules to tax laws. And nothing will let you off the hook.
But the very rules you’ll be zealously observing will one day come to your aid.
No one will strip you of your property, lock you up for no good reason at all,
or buy your a plane ticket and fly you back home on Putin’s orders.
No matter if it’s the right conservatives or the left liberals that control the parliament,
you can be certain that the written rules actually work.
There’s no reason to leave Russia for plain comfort.
The times when the West was viewed as one humongous shopping mall are long gone.
We enjoy the perks of a second-world country and the benefits of cheap labor.
If you have money and don’t have to look for side hustles to make the ends meet,
Moscow is one of the world’s most livable cities.
Somebody is ensuring backups because Russia is governed by unpredictable people,
the risks can’t be calculated, and legislation is a vague concept.
The top brass can easily go Old Testament on you, start a war, or launch nationwide repression.
Russia has no proper judiciary, and you can’t effectively challenge anything.
In this sense, Dubai is no different from Moscow.
You get the same autocracy risk package complete with a peculiar climate and weird traditions.
That’s the worst thing for the Russian elite. That’s why they’re banging on the doors of the Western world.
It’s vital for them. To be able to protect your future, your kids, your property,
and your assets, you need a working democracy, an independent judiciary, and solid legislation.
Long story short, you need everything they’ve been stamping out in Russia.
Everything they despise in Western countries.
Everything that only those who support Ukraine and impose sanctions really have.
You can be thriving off corruption and lawlessness — you can even make a great living off it.
But you can’t take it to the bank as it can always backfire.
The Russian elite is withdrawing their assets to be on the safe side.
There’s no point in directing these assets to a similar jurisdiction,
except where you’re no longer part of the elite and where corruption and lawlessness can crush you.
But it’s bad news not just for the Russian elite.
It’s bad news for us all. It’s hard to tell what our country would look like if we topped
all those perks and top-class services with political competition and functional institutions.
Imagine a country that has it all. You have your Dubai with a vibrant economy and investments
that pay off instantly.
Your levels of everyday comfort are sky-high, you can order the craziest thing you can think of,
and it’ll be delivered in the blink of an eye.
And you have your Western values, with your money and rights fully protected by the immutable law
and by the court that’s impervious to outside pressure.
Imagine what kind of investments we’d be getting, what stand of living we’d be enjoying
without having to wrestle with all of the Middle Eastern downsides and most of Europe’s wrinkles.
Imagine a Russia that’s just borrowing the world’s best practices, and that’s it.
There’s certain poetic justice where those who gave up on stable institutions in Russia for the sake
of wild gains are finally coming to terms with reality.
They now know that you can’t outsource laws, courts, and protected rights
and that they aren’t welcome anywhere else. They have to face the music and go all the way.
Except it means nothing for Russia or its future.
Before we wrap up, here’s a rundown of things I’ve been doing recently outside of YouTube.
If you’re my Twitter follower, you may have picked up on the fact I’ve attended a couple of events hosted
by the Russian opposition figures.
I showed up at a Berlin meeting held by Mikhail Khodorkovsky, attended a Paris meeting moderated
by former MP Dmitry Gudkov, and had an extensive one-on-one chat with Garry Kasparov.
I must admit there’s been a positive trend in these communications.
These people are trying to represent the Russians that oppose the ongoing war, but are stuck outside Russia
without any representation.
Sure, the Russian government doesn’t particularly care about them, but they’re still treated as aliens
in other countries. Thankfully, progress has been made, and I’ll be giving you occasional updates.
We’ve talked about our activities, and I now want to set up a couple of working groups.
Those will be Telegram chatrooms that’ll tackle specific issues. I’m now looking for experts in several fields.
First, those are experts in U.S. law, preferably trained lawyers.
If you’re an American lawyer, please share your story and your contact details (your Telegram handle)
with us on Telegram. Spoiler alert, it has nothing to do with sanctions. But I’ll break this story a bit later.
Second, I need some contacts at the International Red Cross.
If you know someone who works for them or you can introduced me to someone,
please DM our manager by following the link in the description.
Third, if there’s a chance you can help me set up a meeting at the Foreign Ministry of any E.U. member
state with an individual that focuses on Russia or with national MPs that sit on foreign affairs committees,
please fill out the questionnaire.
Importantly, I don’t need the MPs contact details. It’s essential that you be able to set up a meeting.
In other words, get them interested, since they apparently don’t watch my YouTube channel.
So, again, three expertise areas: U.S. lawyers, the International Red Cross, and national parliaments
of the E.U. member states. I’m sure my audience includes those who can help.
Please don’t hesitate to reach out to us by following the links in the description.
That’s it. See you tomorrow!