Russian plane crash punctures Kremlin bubble

YAROSLAVL: The Kremlin has long been accused of living in an unreal world, pontificating that Russia is democratic, the economy prosperous and reforms ushering in much-awaited modernisation.

Elsewhere in the country, the Soviet-era infrastructure is in tatters, red tape and graft squeeze the life out of businesses and the sidelined opposition stands no chance in upcoming key parliamentary and presidential polls.

The Kremlin's purported view of the state of affairs in the country suffered another rude jolt Wednesday when a Yak-42 plane carrying the Russian ice hockey league team Lokomotiv Yaroslavl crashed into a river outside the city of Yaroslavl.

"This is a shock for the entire country," a grim-faced President Dmitry Medvedev said after he placed flowers at the site of the disaster in the sleepy rundown village of Tunoshna.

Ironically Medvedev was due later Thursday to address an annual two-day political conference from Lokomotiv's hockey arena, which has now become a sombre vigil site with thousands of fans leaving flowers and fan scarves to honour the 43 dead.

While some viewed the crash as a macabre coincidence, many fans and analysts said it was an accident waiting to happen that drove home to the Kremlin the grim realities about the decay and neglect in the real Russia.

"Such things happen for a reason," Andrei Sergeyev, a fan sporting a hockey jacket in Lokomotiv's red, white and blue colors, told AFP near the ice arena.

"It is not a good sign," he said, pointing to a string of deadly air crashes in the past months.

Inna Uvarova, a 21-year-old woman clutching a heap of white roses, was more blunt, saying that the most painful thought was that Transport Minister Igor Levitin and other top officials would -- as always -- escape punishment.

"In China, such ministers are shot dead," she said, tears welling in her eyes. "In our country, this cheat would not even face the sack," she said, referring to Levitin.

"Why is this junk being used to fly people?" said Uvarova, who with her husband Roman went to the village of Tunoshna near Yaroslavl to place flowers at the site of the tragedy.

The crash, which left only two survivors -- both in critical condition -- comes on the heels of a summer full of catastrophes including two air crashes that killed more than 50 people and a boat disaster that claimed 122 lives on the Volga River.

Analysts say the deadly spate of crashes is all too predictable as some industries never recovered from the Soviet collapse and many planes and ships are nearing the end of their lifespan.

The latest crash forced the Kremlin to frantically change its plans. Its spokespeople said Medvedev would adjust his plans for the conference, attend the scene of the tragedy and conduct an emergency meeting with officials.

"Deepest condolences to the loved ones of the Yaroslavl air crash victims, and to all Lokomotiv Yaroslavl fans," Medvedev said in a message on Twitter ahead of his visit to Yaroslavl.

Launched in 2009, the Kremlin's political forum -- which started in Yaroslavl on Wednesday -- has been designed to showcase Russia's growing political and economic clout.

Top foreign speakers invited this time include Turkish President Abdullah Gul and UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova.

Conference participants said the disaster dealt a severe blow to Moscow's ambitions.

Serei Markov, a political analyst and parliament member from the ruling United Russia party, said it would be hard to imagine global players take Moscow seriously if a string of catastrophes continues.

"For Russia's voice to sound stronger, it has to bring order to its home first," he told AFP.

Sergei Rogov, director of the Moscow-based Institute for the USA and Canadian Studies at the Russian Academy of Sciences, struck a similar note.

"Our aviation is in deep crisis. We're losing our position on the world market," he told AFP.

"It is a coincidence that makes us think about who we are and what our interests are."

Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2011