Record-High Voter Turnout Trumps West's Ploy to Discredit Russia's Presidential Vote

The election resulted in a resounding victory for Putin, evidenced by the fact that the incumbent leader garnered a significant share of votes amidst a record-breaking voter turnout of 74.22%. This demonstrates the overwhelming support he enjoys among Russians.

Nothing similar, however, is expected to take place later this year on the other side of the Atlantic during the presidential election in the United States, said Dr. Matthew Crosston, professor of national security and director of academic transformation at Bowie State University.

During an interview with Sputnik, Dr. Crosston described the upcoming US election as “a presidential race between two candidates that, quite literally, almost no one is excited about and everyone seems to have complaints for, both Republican and Democrat.”

“I can guarantee there will be no ‘record turnout’ in the American presidential election this year. When people really do not have any excitement for a candidate or do not believe in their overall policy positions for the country, more often than not, they simply do not vote. They do not show up. Their participation is NON-participation,” he remarked.

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Thus, Crosston suggested, any “inevitable” attempts by the Western media and Western governments to describe the Russian presidential election as a “sham” or to question their legitimacy won’t explain the fact that millions of Russians “showed up to cast votes when they really did not have to.”

“That is, in the least, a powerful potential endorsement of Putin's leadership for where the country needs to go,” he noted.

The American professor also commented on Vladimir Putin’s remark about France missing an opportunity to help peacefully resolve the Ukrainian conflict, with the scholar observing that NATO – a military bloc France currently belongs to – is currently “more comfortable with the Russian Federation as its main bogeyman and declared enemy.”

“Putin has a long history of trying to explain to the West, going back nearly two decades now, how numerous overtures from Russia for collaboration, cooperation, cessation of hostilities, the establishment of new dialogue for engagement, have always been either too easily dismissed out of hand or simply ignored from the beginning or preposterous counter-proposals that would clearly be unfavorable to Russia's position on the global stage,” Crosston said.

“Unfortunately, there just aren't many western academics, politicians, or journalists (aside from myself), who seem willing to speak freely about this reality or accurately document the veracity of the claim,” he continued. “Macron has sided with Ukraine from the beginning because he has never seen the possibility of Russian-EU partnership as something he wants to happen. For whatever reason, he has not allowed that to be considered by the French people, based on his rhetoric and posturing.”

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When asked whether the West might follow Putin’s advice and finally recognize Russia’s role in global affairs, the professor’s forecast was grim.

“To put it simply, and I don’t mean this sarcastically or flippantly: Russia can be a welcome member of the global community, with an active and engaged role in global affairs, as soon as it eliminates all of its interests that run counter to American hegemony,” he explained. “Until then, America will continue to push a role for Russia that is highly negative and will expect other countries to emulate that policy. Period,” he maintained.