Russian critic of Putin, Boris Nemtsov, shot and killed near the Kremlin. Reuters.

Boris Nemtsov before he was killed. Reuters. 

A major Vladimir Putin critic and opposition leader, Boris Nemtsov was shot and killed within view of the Kremlin. Reuters. He was shot four times in the back while walking on a bridge. Nemtsov worried about being killed and was a major critic of Vladimir Putin's government. He was very critical of Russia's role in the Ukraine conflict and was one of the few Russians to speak out against the annexation of Crimea. He had lead protests against the governments and was due to lead one this Sunday. He also criticized spending and corruption during the 2014 Sochi Olympics. No one has taken credit for the murder but some are already pointing fingers at Vladimir Putin. Putin has a history of throwing his critics in jail and has been accused of killing them before. However, Putin condemned the shooting and promised a full investigation. 

My Comment:

Very interesting. I see the Western media is pushing the "Putin did it" angle already. It's a bit too soon to say that he did it for sure. What do I think? I think Putin would be a fool to make a martyr out of Nemtsov. Brutally murdering a political opponent on the steps of your seat of power does not play well anywhere. Vladimir Putin is many things but he is not a fool. He is certainly brutal enough to do such a thing, but I think he is smart enough to know it could backfire on him. 

And to be perfectly honest, why on earth would he kill this man for protesting? Putin is bulletproof. His people still love him, with an approval rating that Barack Obama could only dream off. Sure, they don't like the war in Ukraine but as long as the economy is at least afloat and the pensioners are getting their money, they will support Putin. Nemtsov was a prominent Putin critic, but I think the Western media are overselling his importance. To put it into perspective this is not the equivalent of Barack Obama ordering a hit on a prominent Republican, like John Boehner or Mitt Romney. It would be like Obama putting a hit out on Pat Buchanan or Ralph Nader. He wasn't a threat to Putin, unless there is part of this story we are missing. There was some mention of a report about Ukraine, but I doubt that report would have anything so damning that Nemtsov would be worth killing. 

So if Putin didn't do it (and I'm not ruling that out despite everything I said) who did? Good question. I am sure that Boris Nemtsov made plenty of enemies during his lifetime. Vladimir Putin is the one everyone is talking about because he happens to be the most powerful. But I doubt that he is the only one capable of pulling off a hit. And this did look like a hit, or at the very least, a targeted assassination. He was shot four times in the back in a "drive bye" shooting right next to the Kremlin. That tells me that this was not some random crime. There will probably be some conspiracy people saying that Nemtsov was killed by the CIA or some other Western spy agency in an effort discredit Putin, but seems very far fetched and incredibly dangerous. The CIA is certainly capable of such a feat but the risks of doing so would be horrifying even if they pulled it off. Plus there wouldn't gain much from doing so. 

It is also possible that this has nothing to do with politics whatsoever and was instead a crime that had something to do with Nemtsov's personal life. As a semi-famous person he could have had an obsessed fan or stalker. He might have made someone involved with organized crime angry. Or he could have been having an affair (he was with a woman when he was shot). Finally it could be the actions of a foreign terrorist organization. With so many options it is probably a bit premature to blame Putin. But whoever did it, I doubt the truth will come out...