US-government sponsored Voice of America is well aware that Russia’s new PM Mikhail Mishustin is “a career bureaucrat who never had political ambitions” but, strangely enough, it doesn’t seem to know what the man looks like.
Kudos to the US outlet for having noticed a major shake-up in the Russian government, but someone at the desk needs to read up on the country’s internal affairs, it would seem – if only for better face recognition. A photo of the long-time leader of Russia’s Communist party, Gennady Zyuganov, has appeared on VOA’s article about Mishustin – who was ratified by the parliament as PM on Thursday.
The caption under the picture reads “Russia’s new Prime Minister Mishustin” – and neither photo nor caption seems to be going anywhere over an hour later. Who’d ever care to check, right?
Notably, the two men don’t really bear a lot of likeness. Zyuganov is 23 years older than Mishustin and has more hair on his head than the actual PM, who is almost bald.
Even a noticeable pin, shaped as a red Soviet flag, on the lapel of the Communist leader’s jacket wasn’t enough to raise the suspicions of VOA photo editors.
One could have assumed that some clever allegory is at play (never mind the caption) – but Zyuganov doesn’t really fit the definition of “never had any political ambitions as a career bureaucrat” either. The long-time politician ran for Russia’s president four times during his career (but always lost). It’s hard to say if he would’ve settled for the PM’s post – provided someone offered it to him, of course.
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If you’re still wondering how Russia’s new Prime Minister Mishustin looks, here’s his verified photo:
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