Russian Federation increasingly resembles gerontocracy - British intelligence
The age of most of the leaders of the Russian Federation exceeds the average life expectancy in the country.
According to Censor.NET, the UK Ministry of Defence published such data on social network X, citing intelligence data.
Most of Russia's top officials are older than the average life expectancy for men in the country, which is 68 years. This includes Vladimir Putin himself, who is 72 years old.
The report says that the military contract of Russian Security Council Secretary and former Defence Minister Sergey Shoygu has been extended for another five years, until 2030, when he will turn 75. According to reports, Shoygu, who is a close ally of Putin, missed the Victory Day military parade in Moscow on 9 May this year due to heart problems.
"Putin has highly likely sought to keep close personal allies in positions of power to better ensure perceived regime stability, as well as his own survivability," the intelligence experts emphasise.
It is noted that the appointment of older people who have long demonstrated personal loyalty to the president to high positions "likely engendering dissatisfaction and frustration amongst the younger generation of ambitious potential leaders", the UK Ministry of Defence said.
"The Russian state increasingly resembles a gerontocracy; a form of rule in which the senior leaders are significantly older than the most of the adult population. Putin has highly likely sought to keep close personal allies in positions of power to better ensure perceived regime stability as well as his own political survivability," the report says.
In addition, this significantly undermines the effectiveness and efficiency of management decisions, which are likely to be made not by the most capable, but by those who have long shown their consent and loyalty to Putin's authoritarianism, and who benefit most from it, the British intelligence concluded.
