The term "oligarch" has been doing rounds in the recent weeks because of the sanctions imposed on them by Western governments over Russia's invasion of Ukraine. “The U.S. Department of Justice is assembling a dedicated task force to go after the crimes of Russian oligarchs. We're joining with European allies to find and seize their yachts, their luxury apartments, their private jets,” US president Joe Biden said as Europe, the UK. and the US tightened curbs around the Russian oligarchs.
But now, another powerful group, the “silovarchs” have come under the limelight as the Ukraine war has sparked an ‘instability in international order.’ When most of the oligarchs backed by former Russian president Boris Yeltsin left the political stage in the 1990s, their place was taken by the elites from the network of security service and law enforcement veterans known as the siloviki (roughly, “power agents.”), according to experts.
Who exactly are silovarchs and how powerful are they? Here’s what we know:
{{/usCountry}}Who exactly are silovarchs and how powerful are they? Here’s what we know:
{{/usCountry}}Who are oligarchs
Oligarchs in Russia are super-rich people who own superyachts and private planes and fancy real estate, sports franchises and all such luxuries expanding across the country as well as western and european countries. During the collapse of the Soviet Union, the state assets were said to be discharged to private bidders and businessmen via corrupt deals. The original oligarchs, according to those who have studied them, made money by acquiring large stakes in several core industries via unfair means during the liberalisation of the Russian state.
Who are silovarchs
The term combines the words oligarch and siloviki (men of force). Silovarchs are military elites. These are the people who used to occupy positions in the military and the security services before the disintegration of the USSR.
How did silovarchs rose to power
Silovarchs lost all their power when the Soviet Union collapsed. However, when Putin came to power, he was believed to have played a role in facilitating the accumulation of wealth by these people from the military agencies, according to some analysts.
How are silovarchs different from oligarchs
Silovarchs mostly just control companies through positions in management or on supervisory boards rather than sheer money.
“The siloviki see their mission as precisely to fix the problems the oligarchs created - to restore respect for law enforcement, enhance presidential powers and clean up the media, political parties and business circles, which they believe the oligarchs corrupted,” Daniel Treisman, Political science professor in University of California, has said in his book related to the subject.
Oligarchs wanted a weak but open political system, in which their wealth could power. But the silovarchs want hierarchical loyalty, national interest and self restraint.
How powerful are silovarchs
Silovarchs are believed to be the backbone of President Putin's administration, according to some critics. “Silovarchs can deploy intelligence networks, state prosecutors, and armed forces to intimidate or expropriate business rivals,” Daniel Treisman says.
While the silovarchs may not be in the army or the FSB, they remain closely linked and highly influential in those organisations.
Do silovarchs have a say in Russian affairs
The silovarchs reportedly influence the political and economic decision making at the highest level in Russia. They have been known to occupy key positions in the oil, gas, defence, transport and nuclear power sectors.
Silovarchs control more than a third of Russia’s GDP, reports say. “If silovarchy continues it will develop…the security services or armed forces will dominate both politics and big business,” Daniel Treisman wrote in his book Putin’s Silovarchs.
Silovarchs-Putin relations
The silovarchs need a way to enjoy their gains without fear of prosecution. They do so, by backing Putin. “They (silovarchs) are part and partial of President Putin's regime and not a separate group aside from it," Hugo Crosthwaite of security intelligence firm Dragonfly, told news outlet Insider.