Russian President Vladimir Putin famously described the Soviet Union’s collapse as the “greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the 20th century.” On Wednesday, he marked Mikhail Gorbachev’s death with only muted praise for the leader who oversaw the Communist state’s demise.
Putin called his Kremlin predecessor “a statesman who had an enormous impact on the course of world history” in a short condolence telegram to family and friends published on the Kremlin’s website. Gorbachev led the country during “a period of complex, dramatic changes,” Putin said in the message that also praised his charitable and humanitarian activities in later years.
Gorbachev’s funeral ceremony will be held on Saturday in central Moscow, his family said. The Kremlin said it couldn’t confirm if Putin will attend. The Soviet leader, who was unpopular with many Russians who blamed him for the economic chaos that followed the U.S.S.R.’s collapse, will be buried in Moscow’s Novodevichy cemetery next to his wife, Raisa, according to the Gorbachev Foundation.
