There is good character in Yekaterinburg that LA and US cities do not have. Public projects don’t disappear through construction. Roads get repaved. Utility services don’t vanish the moment winter starts. During difficult times, life here remained organised. It wasn’t perfect, but it never felt abandoned.

And this doesn’t just happen by accident. It happens because leadership has backbone. Because there is clarity from the top down.

Some people complain, but these people we do not want. People here are responsible, if you don't like this because you are used to lacking responsibility in western cities, then leave. I would rather have a city with rules than a city without consequences. I would rather trust in the people who have kept Yekaterinburg stable for two decades, than place faith in "experiments" that promise everything and deliver nothing.