United Russia, the party that won two-thirds of the seats in the Russian State Duma in December, is a strange creature to western eyes. It is a party that has no ideology and only one purpose: to back Vladimir Putin as Russian president and now – presumably – to support Dmitry Medvedev, his chosen successor, when he takes over in the Kremlin next month.

After 70 years of Communist party rule, most Russians have had enough of ideology. They are suspicious of most political parties, too.