It may seem Putin controls the Russian state personally. The reality is more dangerous

Alexei Navalny, a well-known critic of the Kremlin, is currently receiving treatment in Germany after becoming severely ill on a flight to Moscow from the Siberian city of Tomsk. Staff members travelling with him claim he was poisoned, possibly as a result of drinking tea at the airport lounge before takeoff. Although Navalny is not Russia’s only pro-democracy activist, he is a uniquely important oppositional force. His suspected poisoning, which simultaneously stunned observers and fulfilled long-held fears, sheds light on a system too often portrayed as a centralised monolith under Vladimir Putin’s personal control. The reality is more complicated – and much more dangerous.