Old rules no longer apply: Fear now grips Russia's political elite

It's reminiscent of the worst times in Soviet history. The death of Transport Minister Starovoyt and a wave of repression show the political elite that it can happen to almost anyone.

Russia's political elite is in shock. Since the death of Transport Minister Roman Starovoyt, who had been fired by Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin shortly before his death due to corruption allegations, many in Moscow fear that they could be the next targets of the state's hunt for corrupt individuals.

The Russian president did not attend either the memorial service on Thursday or Starovoyt's funeral on Friday in St. Petersburg. Although the circumstances of the 53-year-old Starovoyt's death are not yet entirely clear, Russian media have already reported that he was under investigation for corruption and that he was due to be arrested soon. According to authorities, he allegedly shot himself in his car.

"This is a great loss for us, very unexpected. We are all very shocked," said 42-year-old Valentina, the wife of one of Starovoy's colleagues, at the ceremony on Thursday. With tears in her eyes, she said: "He was so active, so cheerful, he loved life very much. I don't understand how this could have happened."

Funeral scenes like in "The Godfather"

In a somber atmosphere reminiscent of funerals in Francis Ford Coppola's cult film "The Godfather," Starovoy's former colleagues declined to comment. After placing flowers by the coffin in dark suits, they quickly disappeared back into their black limousines.

Starovoyt served as governor of the Russian region of Kursk, bordering Ukraine, from 2019 until last year before being promoted to minister in Moscow in May 2024—three months before the Ukrainian army occupied parts of Kursk in a surprise attack. The attack was a setback for the Kremlin.

Starovoy's successor as head of the Kursk region, Alexei Smirnov, was arrested in the spring for embezzling funds intended for strengthening border security. Ukrainians had advanced there without difficulty, but nine months later they were pushed back from the region.

Staroweit as a scapegoat?

The authorities "tried to make him (Starovoyt) a scapegoat," accuses analyst Andrei Pertsev of the independent Russian exile news portal "Medusa," which is "undesirable" and banned in Russia. The Ukrainian army's advance was primarily due to the fact that "there weren't enough soldiers to defend the border." But it was easier to blame a civilian, says Pertsev.

The events surrounding Starovoyt are part of a wave of repression against high-ranking officials who have recently been accused of enriching themselves during the Russian offensive in Ukraine. Observers point out that there have always been cases of corruption, but that the military offensive has changed the rules of the game.

"There were rules before that people knew: Once they climbed high enough, they were left alone," says Pertsev. But those rules "don't work anymore."

Putin regularly announced his intention to crack down on corruption, even though critics accused him of illegally enriching himself. However, the rare, highly publicized arrests for corruption had previously often targeted the opposition or lower ranks of the Russian political class.

Something is going "completely different" in the system

Now, however, political scientist Tatyana Stanovaya of the Carnegie Center for Russia-Eurasia, which is also banned in Russia, notes that "something in the system has been working completely differently" since the Russian offensive in Ukraine in February 2022. "Any action or inaction that, in the opinion of the authorities, increases the state's vulnerability to the enemy must be punished without mercy and without consideration," she emphasizes.

Nina Khrushcheva, a professor at the New School in New York and a great-granddaughter of former Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev, also confirms that the Kremlin considers the actions in Ukraine a "holy war" that has rewritten the rules. "During a holy war, you don't steal; you tighten your belt and work 24 hours a day."

Several generals and defense officials have been arrested for embezzlement in recent years. In early July, former Deputy Defense Minister Timur Ivanov was sentenced to 13 years in prison.

Starovoyt's alleged suicide has "frightened" the elite, Khrushcheva says. The mood is that it's impossible to break away from the leadership. Nothing like this has happened since 1953, since Stalin's time.

This atmosphere has created a "sense of hopelessness" among Moscow's political elite that won't go away easily, says Stanovaya. She warns: "In the future, the system will be increasingly prepared to sacrifice even prominent figures."