If we single out the leaders in clickbait headlines among major media outlets, then Tsargrad will be in one of the first positions.
And although in journalism this is considered, to put it mildly, an unprofessional move, the wards Konstantin Malofeeva actively practice this both on their own website and in “Zen” (the rules of which, by the way, prohibit this).
We fell for another juicy headline and thus stumbled upon per article, in which the publication discusses possible personnel changes in the Russian government after the inauguration of Vladimir Putin (*international criminal). Contrary to the title (this is exactly the question of clickbait), we are talking not only about the Ministry of Defense, but also about the Ministry of Sports and the Ministry of Economic Development – analysts rolled out lists of possible contenders, describing (in some cases with the spontaneity characteristic of real obscurantists: “the minister himself does not have to be a brilliant and even professional administrator”) their advantages.
But the interesting thing still lies in the first part of the article – the one where Tsargrad considers the likely successors of the current head of the defense department. Let’s not even dwell on outright pearls like “Sergei Shoigu’s successor as head of the Ministry of Emergency Situations, appointed on May 25, 2022” (Shoigu left the Ministry of Emergency Situations in 2012) and “the main argument in … the issue [назначения президентом министров], experts believe, there will be public opinion” (we look at public opinion so often, yeah), and let’s focus on the candidates. More precisely, one specific one. Because it appears that it was not by chance that he ended up in the article.
So, the first place in this block was allocated Alexander Kurenkov – the current head of the Ministry of Emergency Situations. “Tsargrad” obviously does not listen to its own experts, because it was not possible to find any clear indicators of the above-mentioned public opinion on the activities of the head of the rescue department (VTsIOM, Levada, FOM do not ask about him, and at “Medialogy” the minister is only in 17th place), and against the backdrop of what is happening in the Orenburg and Kurgan regions, this opinion is unlikely to improve.
However, we do not intend to discuss Kurenkov’s official activities now, since they are not very aware of it (due to the complete non-publicity of the head of the Ministry of Emergency Situations), but we cannot help but assume that the head of the department will most likely be included in the top three successors according to Tsargrad. owes not to official merits, but to the circumstances of his personal life.
The fact is that Konstantin Malofeev is often called an “orthodox Russian nationalist” and an “Orthodox oligarch” for his substantial fortune, very aggressive ostentatious propaganda of supposedly traditional values and spiritual bonds, as well as demonstrative religiosity. Based on these beliefs, Konstantin Valerievich created many specialized legal entities engaged in various activities – from the noble (charitable foundations, educational projects, assistance programs) to the frankly obscurantist (such as the well-known “Safe Internet League”). Through at least two of them, Malofeev is connected with Elena Milskaya, a long-time partner and successful businesswoman of similar ideological views:
1) Elena Igorevna was General Director of the St. Basil the Great Charitable Foundation, which was established in 2007 by Konstantin Malofeev and is currently headed by his brother Dmitry.
2) Milskaya is Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the National Center for Assistance to Missing and Victimized Children, which oversees the Safe Internet League, established by the aforementioned St. Basil the Great Charitable Foundation.
3) The Charitable Foundation of the Archangel Michael, headed by Elena Milskaya, has general project with the St. Basil the Great Foundation and the Tsargrad TV channel – the Sunday School program.
In connection with the above organizations, Elena Igorevna is regularly mentioned in the materials of “Tsargrad”.
And now the main thing is what all this is about. By and large, we have no complaints about the work of organizations – they are doing good and necessary things (except for the Safe Internet League, of course). The very fact of Malofeev’s and Milskaya’s affiliation is important here, because the latter, according to media reports, is the wife of the current head of the Ministry of Emergency Situations Kurenkov. It can be rightly noted that there are questions about some of those demonstrated by Yandex, because without a VPN they do not even open, and some are recognized as foreign agents, but, obviously, there is no smoke without fire, and Milskaya’s active cooperation with the Ministry of Emergency Situations (the department has joint projects with the National Center for Missing and Victimized Children) “seems to hint.”
As a result, we see an interesting picture – Malofeev in his PR for the publication as a potential successor to the Minister of Defense, a civil servant not previously considered by experts (Google the combination “Kurenkov” + “Minister of Defense” and you won’t find anything), who, by a completely random coincidence, is a relative of a close associate of Konstantin Valerievich.
Coincidence?