THIS MATERIAL (INFORMATION) WAS PRODUCED AND DISTRIBUTED BY FOREIGN AGENT ELIZABETA NIKOLAEVNA OSETINSKAYA OR CONCERNING THE ACTIVITIES OF FOREIGN AGENT ELIZABETA NIKOLAEVNA OSETINSKAYA 18+ THIS MATERIAL (INFORMATION) WAS PRODUCED AND DISTRIBUTED BY FOREIGN AGENT GRIGORY SHALVOVICH CHKHARTISHVILI OR CONCERNING THE ACTIVITIES OF FOREIGN AGENT GRIGORY SHALVOVICH CHKHARTISHVILI 18+ You can support us by subscribing to / osetinskaya or making a one-time donation, including in rubles, here https://donate.osetinskaya.io And if your business is not in Russia, then the best thing you can do is buy advertising from us. Write to us at [email protected] Invest in apartments in Bali with Alex Villas https://clck.ru/37zqgx Use the promo code OSSETINSKAYA - 2% discount. Advertising of IP "Bakhtin E.A." Erid LdtCKQVmw 18+ Find out more about second citizenship with the international company Astons - https://cutt.ly/LwLS35sn On December 18, 2023, Rosfinmonitoring included the writer Boris Akunin (real name - Grigory Chkhartishvili) in the register of terrorists and extremists, and the Prosecutor General's Office of Russia opened a criminal case against him under two articles - “for fakes” and “on justification of terrorism”. Immediately after this, all Russian bookstores, including online ones, stopped selling Akunin's books, and publishing houses refused to print new ones. Boris Akunin is a writer, Japanologist and translator, the author of several dozen novels. Our conversation with Akunin in 2019 was the most popular video on the channel for a long time. We wanted to record a new interview when the 10th, final volume of "History" comes out. But now it will not be published in Russia anytime soon, and our conversation is Akunin's first big interview after all the events described. We met with him in London and talked about where you can now read his books, why it is important to remain optimistic and what the future holds for Russia. Timestamps: 00:00 Teaser 00:01:43 Were you prepared for your books to be banned in Russia? 00:03:10 Why was it necessary to talk to the pranksters 00:05:59 “I was chosen for a showpiece” 00:07:51 “The main thing is to have a general background of intimidation and fear” 00:09:20 How many of Akunin’s books were sold last year 00:11:12 Advertising 00:13:14 “LitRes was even embarrassed to apologize” - how did publishers behave after the books were banned 00:14:17 Do you expect reprisals against readers? 00:16:05 “It’s especially hard for people in creative professions in Russia right now” 00:18:01 “It irritates me when they say that we’re in 1937 now” 00:20:00 “These piglets will push each other around the trough and devour each other” 00:20:48 Advertising 00:23:21 About emigrants: “Despondency is the luxury of good times” 00:26:04 “My Calendar” - a book by Akunin for training positivity 00:29:15 How to maintain optimism for people inside Russia 00:31:38 “There is a local cold snap in Russia right now. This is not forever, but this time must be lived through" 00:33:25 How to properly communicate with those who left and those who stayed 00:35:55 ​​"You have to pay a very high price for self-respect" 00:39:17 "There is no longer a place for the cunning, there comes a time for the completely stupid" 00:40:20 Why is Akunin disappointed in opposition politicians 00:43:31 How can the war between Russia and Ukraine end? 00:44:37 Mistakes of the Ukrainian leadership and the West in the fight against Putin 00:46:51 Did Israel's war with Hamas help Putin? 00:50:31 Could World War III begin? 00:52:15 Why did Akunin finally decide to write the tenth volume of "History"? 00:54:33 What focus in this book is important for you? 00:57:58 Why Russia Couldn't Become a Democratic Power After 1917 00:59:45 Key Forks in the Road After the 1917 Revolution 01:01:29 Why Did Stalin Win the Power Struggle? 01:02:59 So, Was Stalin an Effective Manager? 01:06:57 "Lenin and Trotsky Are Romantics, While Stalin Is a Pragmatist" 01:08:12 Was There an Alternative Way to Industrialize Russia? 01:11:02 "The History of World War II is a History of Mistakes" 01:12:00 "If the Soviet Union Had Developed Differently, Fascism Would Not Have Arrived in Germany" 01:15:18 Was the Holodomor a Genocide of a Single Nation? 01:17:17 When did independent Ukraine form? 01:18:45 “We live in an era of the half-disintegration of an empire” 01:19:50 Why does Russia want to become a global stronghold of conservative values? 01:24:20 “The repressive machine has spun up and will continue to spin up” 01:28:57 Should we expect the next volume of history? 01:31:29 What to read about the history of the Soviet Union. Book recommendations from Akunin 01:37:30 Options for Russia's development: Northern Iran, China, or Putin's “black swan” 01:42:08 Creating a space for free, uncensored culture and new formats 01:47:04 “A new market is emerging befo