It also fits a wider pattern. As a scholar of historical memory, I have observed that references to the Russian Middle Ages ...

but Russia is not to blame for Europeans having to stock up on firewood as if it’s the Middle Ages, Russian President Vladimir Putin said, speaking during the Russian Energy Week forum.

TASS/. The tightening of customs restrictions in relation to Russian citizens in the European Union is a throwback to the Middle Ages, Russian Ambassador to Hungary Evgeny Stanislavov told TASS.