The Stream

Russia’s winter of discontent?

It’s the biggest unrest in Russia since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991.

Tens of thousands of people in Russia continue to protest against the results of Russia’s parliamentary election. On December 4th, United Russia, the party of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin won close to 50 per cent of the ballots cast.

Opponents say the vote was rigged and point to a plethora of amateur footage as evidence. However Putin’s supporters say the results were fair and the Prime Minister himself has blamed the U.S. for provoking Russia biggest unrest since the fall of the Soviet Union.

In this episode, The Stream speaks to Anastasia Mirzoyants, the Eurasia Project Manager at Intermedia, a leading consulting firm; Jeffrey Mankoff, Associate Director of International Security Studies at Yale University and a visiting fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

What do you think? Is Russia experiencing its own political awakening? Send us your thoughts and comments on Facebook or Twitter using hashtag #AJStream.

These are some highlights of the conversation around the web: