While many are vying for political reform in Russia, outspoken politician Vladimir Zhirinovsky has his own idea of what the country needs — an omnipotent emperor.
"I am not saying: find an heir to [imperial dynasty] the Romanovs. Maybe we could choose an emperor, a tsar for 10 years. And every 10 years we would change him," Zhirinovsky said, according to a transcript on his Liberal Democratic Party (LDPR) website.
Zhirinovsky, speaking at a State Duma tribune on Monday, added that Russia was not a good fit for communism or democracy and that the only way for the country to develop would be under a strong monarchy.
"Under the guise of a monarchy — some kind of institute of power — we will develop the country, hard, mobilized, aggressively, most of all in our outward communication," Zhirinovsky said, according to the LDPR transcript.
"Russia has a great future ahead of it, but only if we take the hardest line on all topics," he said.
To summarize his thoughts, Zhirinovsky said of his preferred system: "It would be a variant of democracy, but all power should be vested [in the emperor]."
