Putin’s Witnesses
Vitaly Mansky (DW) 2019
Film Review
This two-part documentary series consists of footage Russian exile Vitaly Mansky filmed between December 31, 1999 and December 31, 2000 as videographer for Putin’s first presidential campaign. It jives quite nicely with the CIA/State Department version of Putin’s Career.
Part 1 is mostly footage of Putin’s predecessor and mentor Boris Yeltsin and his family watching the March 26, 1999 election returns, in which Putin received 51.2% of the vote.
Both the filmmaker and his family clearly preferred Yeltsin and were hostile from the outset to Putin’s presidency.
There is also significant historical inaccuracy in the narrative Mansky offers as background. First he misconstrues the election of Boris Yeltsin in 1996 as the first “free and democratic election” in Russian history. This ignores major evidence of CIA meddling in the 1996 (and possibly 1991) election. See
US Meddling in 1996 Russian Elections in Support of Boris Yeltsin
Mansky also ignores the coup Yeltsin launched in 1993 abolishing the Russian legislature and ordering Russian tanks to fire on lawmakers when they refused to disband.
Second he totally misconstrues the reason for Yeltsin’s resignation in 1999. Mansky would have us believe the latter resigned for health reasons. The filmmaker neglects to mention the Russian economy had collapsed in 1998 (due to Yeltsin’s sell-off of state assets to US interests and criminal oligarchs) and that Yeltsin faced major mutiny in the Russian military (due to their strenuous opposition to the NATO bombing of Serbia). See How Putin Outwitted the Russian Oligarchs
Third he totally omits any mention of the Russian oligarchs, who in conjunction with Wall Street consultants caused the economic crisis (and a 20 year drop in average life expectancy) by systematically looting post-Soviet Russia of most of their industrial wealth.
The documentary can be viewed free at the DW webpage: https://www.dw.com/en/putins-witnesses/a-51172904
The Most Revolutionary Act 
You know what? I cannot stand Putin for the suffering he is inflicting on his own citizens and he doesn’t care… just like Trump
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From everything I’ve read, Trace, Putin only stays in power thanks to the good graces of the remaining oligarchs – that they, like America’s Wall Street billionaires, are the true power behind the throne.
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@Lara/Trace
As opposed to the extensive damage of the drunken Yeltsin on his people?
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I agree, mohaneer. Yeltsin was far worse. He let Wall Street, the FBI and CIA come in and destroy the Russian economy. At least the Russian life expectancy is finally starting to recover.
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