Russia Attacks Ukraine - 23 Feb 2022 #8

[sds71]

Ukraine published the names and photos of 10 Russian soldiers whom they accuse of kidnapping and torturing unarmed civilians in the town of Bucha, the most detailed accusation yet against Russian forces in Ukraine. https://nyti.ms/3OJjVAW

 

[dotr]

Updated 9:07 a.m. ET, April 29, 2022
Live updates: Russia's war in Ukraine (cnn.com)
''51 min ago
2 Russian regions claim their borders with Ukraine have been shelled
From CNN’s Anna Chernova
Two regions of Russia that border Ukraine — Kursk and Bryansk — said that their territory has been shelled.

“The morning in the border [town] of Rylsk was restless. At about 8:00am, mortars fired at the checkpoint in the village of Krupets,” the Kursk region Gov. Roman Starovoit said in Telegram post Friday morning local time.
According to Starovoit, “the firing points were suppressed by the return fire of [Russian] border guards and the military.” There were no casualties or destruction, he added.

The head of the Bryansk region, Alexander Bogomaz, said the border department of the Federal Security Service (FSB) had reported shelling in the village of Belaya Berezka, allegedly carried out from Ukrainian territory.

“On April 29, a branch of the border department of the FSB of Russia in the Bryansk region in the village of Belaya Berezka, Trubchevsky district, was subjected to mortar fire from the territory of Ukraine,” Bogomaz said in a Telegram post on his official channel Friday. He said there were no casualties.

Water and electricity networks were damaged as a result of the shelling in the Bryansk region, Bogomaz added.

40 min ago
600 injured in recent bombing of Azovstal steel plant, Mariupol mayor says
From CNN's Tim Lister in Lviv

The mayor of Mariupol said that more than 600 people were injured in Russian bombing that struck the makeshift hospital facility within the besieged Azovstal steel complex.

"You already know that they dropped bombs on the hospital, aerial bombs destroyed the hospital, and that is a sign of a war crime, because the number of wounded before that was 170, and now it is over 600," the mayor, Vadym Boichenko, said on Ukrainian television.

The Azovstal plant was heavily bombed on Wednesday night, according to multiple accounts.''

• "Illegal theft of grain": Ukrainian officials have accused Russian forces of "robbing" wheat from parts of the country they have occupied, a move which increases the threat to international food supplies. “The looting of grain from the Kherson region, as well as the blocking of shipments from Ukrainian ports and the mining of shipping lanes, threaten the world’s food security," the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said in a statement reported by Reuters. The ministry also demanded that Russia stops "the illegal theft of grain, unblock Ukrainian ports, restore freedom of navigation and allow the passage of merchant ships.” CNN is unable to verify these allegations independently and the Kremlin has said it had no information on the matter.''

 

[PommyMommy]

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter - 6 hrs ago
At least 1 Ukrainian soldier killed by Russia’s airstrike on Azovstal plant. Almost 100 wounded Ukrainian soldiers sheltering at Mariupol’s steel plant got new injuries and concussions as a result of Russia’s attack on April 28, Ukrainska Pravda media outlet reported.

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter
"Putin has drowned in blood three out of the four most important cities of my life, one after one." Illia Ponomarenko: How Russia killed 3 cities of my life (kyivindependent.com)

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter
Mayor: Russian forces begin mass abduction of people in occupied Melitopol. According to Ivan Fedorov, two weeks ago, Russian occupiers began illegally conscripting men of military age. But recently, Russians have started to kidnap them from checkpoints en masse, he said.

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter - 5 hrs ago
Media: Ukraine hopes to evacuate civilians from Azovstal plant in Mariupol on April 29. According to Ombudsman Lyudmila Denisova, about 1,000 civilians are sheltering in Mariupol’s Azovstal plant including infants, children, elderly, and women, as well as 500 wounded soldiers.

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter - 4 hrs ago
Interior Minister: Ukraine needs more specialists, equipment to demine its territories. Denys Monastyrsky said Ukraine has asked international organizations to help demine its liberated territories by sending their pyrotechnicians and supplying equipment.

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter
Russian missile killed Ukrainian RFE/RL producer in Kyiv. Vira Hyrych was killed by a Russian missile that hit her apartment building in Kyiv on April 28, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported. Her dead body was found under the rubble on April 29. Photo: Vira Hyrych/Facebook

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter - 3 hrs ago
State Border Guard Service: Sumy Oblast shelled from Russia. Sumy Oblast, which borders Russia, was attacked with mortars more than 30 times on the morning of April 29. No casualties have been reported yet.

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter
After a month of living under Russian shelling in complete isolation, Liudmyla Usenka, 69, began to accept the terrifying glimpse of her future. “I didn’t think that I would make it till the end of the war,” she said, breaking into tears.
Wheelchair-bound Bucha resident on surviving Russian occupation: ‘I hope no one will have to live through this’ (kyivindependent.com)

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter - 2 hrs ago
BBC: Russian occupiers abduct 2 British volunteers in Ukraine. Two British volunteers were detained by Russian forces at a checkpoint in Zaporizhzhia Oblast on April 25, as they were trying to rescue a family from a Russian-occupied settlement there, BBC reported.

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter - 1 hr ago
Ukraine reports 243 Russian crimes against journalists since Feb. 24. The State Committee for Television and Radio-Broadcasting said Russian troops committed 243 crimes against journalists and media in 16 Ukrainian regions.

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter
The crimes included murder, injury, abduction, threats, and shelling of TV towers. Overall, 7 journalists were killed, 15 went missing, 14 died as combatants or from Russian shelling when they weren’t on duty, 9 were wounded, and 8 journalists were abducted.

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter
Ombudsman: Russian troops step up ‘filtration’ in Mariupol. According to Lyudmyla Denisova, Russian forces are not allowing men to exit the city, while residents of Mariupol are forced to undergo a special procedure where Russian forces question and often torture civilians.

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter
Governor: Ukraine liberated village north of Kharkiv. Kharkiv Oblast Governor said the military liberated the village of Ruska Lozova. According to the Armed Forces, this settlement was of strategic importance, as it was used as a base for artillery attacks on Kharkiv.

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter - 35 min ago
Mariupol Mayor: Over 600 wounded remain in field hospital at Azovstal plant. Mayor Vadym Boychenko said Russians continue using heavy weapons. “Before shelling the hospital, the number of wounded was 170, now — over 600. Russian forces killed more than 20,000 people,” he said.

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter - 5 min ago
Kyiv residents asked not to drive private transport due to fuel shortages. Kyiv City Council urged citizens to use public transport instead, as scarce fuel is required by the military.

 

[Bit of hope]

Russisch Telegram-kanaal publiceert 700 namen van buitenlandse ’huurlingen’ in Oekraïne

Source: De Telegraaf is a daily newspaper in the Netherlands and a related news website, published by Uitgeversmaatschappij De Telegraaf (UMT), a subsidiary of the Belgian Mediahuis . The newspaper , founded in 1893, which appears nationwide six days a week, includes national and foreign news and has a daily financial section,

MOSCOW - The pro-Russian Telegram channel Rybar has shared 700 names of foreign 'mercenaries'. The list would include Belgians, French, Dutch and British.

The pro-Russian Telegram account, which has nearly 400,000 followers, has published a list of the names of 700 foreign "mercenaries" currently fighting in Ukraine. The list contains first and last name, date of birth and the number of their identity card. They would be part of the International Legion of Territorial Defense of Ukraine, also known as the Ukrainian Foreign Legion. It is unclear where exactly the list comes from.

The list would already be at least 30 French and 100 British. Seven Belgians are also mentioned. It seems that there are also 9 Dutch people on the list.

<modsnip -not an approved source>

Earlier in the day, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry had released the names and photos of ten Russian soldiers. They might be involved in the war crimes in Butsha. The 700 names of the "mercenaries" were posted to Telegram just hours later.

 

[cujenn81]

Relatives: Former US Marine killed fighting in Ukraine

WASHINGTON (AP) — A former U.S. Marine was killed alongside Ukrainian forces in the war with Russia, his relatives told news outlets in what’s the first known death of an American citizen fighting in Ukraine.

Rebecca Cabrera told CNN her 22-year-old son, Willy Joseph Cancel, was killed Monday while working for a military contracting company that sent him to Ukraine.

“He wanted to go over because he believed in what Ukraine was fighting for, and he wanted to be a part of it to contain it there so it didn’t come here, and that maybe our American soldiers wouldn’t have to be involved in it,” she said.

Cabrera said her son’s body has not been found.

“They haven’t found his body,” she said. “They are trying, the men that were with him, but it was either grab his body or get killed, but we would love for him to come back to us.”

She said her son flew to Poland on March 12 and entered Ukraine shortly after.

 

[Sundog]

Relatives: Former US Marine killed fighting in Ukraine

WASHINGTON (AP) — A former U.S. Marine was killed alongside Ukrainian forces in the war with Russia, his relatives told news outlets in what’s the first known death of an American citizen fighting in Ukraine.

Rebecca Cabrera told CNN her 22-year-old son, Willy Joseph Cancel, was killed Monday while working for a military contracting company that sent him to Ukraine.

“He wanted to go over because he believed in what Ukraine was fighting for, and he wanted to be a part of it to contain it there so it didn’t come here, and that maybe our American soldiers wouldn’t have to be involved in it,” she said.

Cabrera said her son’s body has not been found.

“They haven’t found his body,” she said. “They are trying, the men that were with him, but it was either grab his body or get killed, but we would love for him to come back to us.”

She said her son flew to Poland on March 12 and entered Ukraine shortly after.

Very sad. Prayers for his family, and I hope that his remains are recovered and repatriated.

 

[Bit of hope]

Lavrov: Rusland niet in oorlog met de NAVO • Nederlandse marechaussees begin mei naar Oekraïne

11 HOURS AGO
Dane of Ukrainian Foreign Legion killed
A 25-year-old Dane who had registered with the Ukrainian Foreign Legion was killed in a Russian attack on the city of Mykolaiv on Wednesday. The Danish TV station TV2 has received reports about this, including from fellow combatants.

The commander of the division in which the Dane fought says his body is in Russian hands. "It is therefore difficult for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to get confirmation of his death," TV2 said. The Dane's family has been informed by the division commander.

How many more....I'm very concerned about the civilians and military personnel still in the steel fabric in Mariupol.

 

[Sundog]

G20 Summit scheduled for fall 2022, Putin says he plans to attend.
Apparently Zelensky was also invited.

Putin accepts invitation to attend G20 summit, setting up Biden showdown

"Putin expressed his gratitude for the invitation to the G20 summit and he said he would attend," Widodo said.

An official with Indonesia's Foreign Ministry, Triansyah Djani, confirmed last month that Indonesia would "remain impartial" and invite all G20 members to the summit, as per established procedures.

 

[CSIDreamer]

Long week and I'm tired. Can anyone be so kind as to dumb down the lend lease program we revived? Exactly what type of equipment is included? Specifically fighter planes?

 

[Sundog]

European gas prices have surged 28% since Russia halted supplies to Poland and Bulgaria

European gas prices surged on Wednesday, after Russia halted supplies to Poland and Bulgaria, stoking concern that other countries in the continent could be targeted for their support towards Ukraine.

Benchmark Dutch futures contracts tracking Europe's wholesale gas price rose as much as 28% to 117 euros per megawatt hour ($124) in early trading Wednesday, according to data from Investing.com.

 

[sds71]

Pope Francis reached out to Putin three times asking to allow the ship with a Vatican flag to evacuate civilians trapped in Mariupol's Azovstal steel mill, but all three times his requests were rejected, according to the Italian newspaper Il Messaggero
Putin per tre volte ha detto “no” al Papa per i corridoi umanitari a Mariupol, sfumata l'idea di una nave con bandiera vaticana

 

[cujenn81]

Long week and I'm tired. Can anyone be so kind as to dumb down the lend lease program we revived? Exactly what type of equipment is included? Specifically fighter planes?

Here’s what I’ve gathered…

The legislation allows the president to approve the export of defense articles without the need for Congressional approval to ensure it arrives in Ukraine as soon as possible.

“The President may authorize the United States Government to lend or lease defense articles to the Government of Ukraine or to governments of Eastern European countries impacted by the Russian Federation’s invasion of Ukraine to help bolster those countries' defense capabilities and protect their civilian populations from potential invasion or ongoing aggression by the armed forces of the Government of the Russian Federation.”

“Not later than 60 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall establish expedited procedures for the delivery of any defense article loaned or leased to the Government of Ukraine under an agreement entered into under subsection (a) to ensure timely delivery of the article to that Government.”

Ukraine Democracy Defense Lend-Lease Act of 2022 - Wikipedia

Definition Of Defense Article.—In this Act, the term “defense article” has the meaning given that term in section 47 of the Arms Export Control Act (22 U.S.C. 2794).

https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg...ODE-2020-title22-chap39-subchapIV-sec2794.pdf

Defense article, except as provided in paragraph (7) of this section, means, with re- spect to a sale or transfer by the United States under the authority of this chapter or any other foreign assistance or sales program of the United States—

(A) any weapon, weapons system, munition, aircraft, vessel, boat, or other implement of war,
(B) any property, installation, commodity, material, equipment, supply, or goods used for the purposes of making military sales,
(C) any machinery, facility, tool, material, supply, or other item necessary for the man- ufacture, production, processing, repair, servicing, storage, construction, transpor- tation, operation, or use of any article listed in this paragraph, and
(D) any component or part of any article listed in this paragraph,
but does not include merchant vessels or (as defined by the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 [42 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.]) source material (except uranium depleted in the isotope 235 which is incorporated in defense articles solely to take advantage of high density or pyrophoric char- acteristics unrelated to radioactivity), byprod- uct material, special nuclear material, produc- tion facilities, utilization facilities, or atomic weapons or articles involving Restricted Data

 

[CSIDreamer]

Here’s what I’ve gathered…

The legislation allows the president to approve the export of defense articles without the need for Congressional approval to ensure it arrives in Ukraine as soon as possible.

“The President may authorize the United States Government to lend or lease defense articles to the Government of Ukraine or to governments of Eastern European countries impacted by the Russian Federation’s invasion of Ukraine to help bolster those countries' defense capabilities and protect their civilian populations from potential invasion or ongoing aggression by the armed forces of the Government of the Russian Federation.”

“Not later than 60 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall establish expedited procedures for the delivery of any defense article loaned or leased to the Government of Ukraine under an agreement entered into under subsection (a) to ensure timely delivery of the article to that Government.”

Ukraine Democracy Defense Lend-Lease Act of 2022 - Wikipedia

Definition Of Defense Article.—In this Act, the term “defense article” has the meaning given that term in section 47 of the Arms Export Control Act (22 U.S.C. 2794).

https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg...ODE-2020-title22-chap39-subchapIV-sec2794.pdf

Defense article, except as provided in paragraph (7) of this section, means, with re- spect to a sale or transfer by the United States under the authority of this chapter or any other foreign assistance or sales program of the United States—

(A) any weapon, weapons system, munition, aircraft, vessel, boat, or other implement of war,
(B) any property, installation, commodity, material, equipment, supply, or goods used for the purposes of making military sales,
(C) any machinery, facility, tool, material, supply, or other item necessary for the man- ufacture, production, processing, repair, servicing, storage, construction, transpor- tation, operation, or use of any article listed in this paragraph, and
(D) any component or part of any article listed in this paragraph,
but does not include merchant vessels or (as defined by the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 [42 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.]) source material (except uranium depleted in the isotope 235 which is incorporated in defense articles solely to take advantage of high density or pyrophoric char- acteristics unrelated to radioactivity), byprod- uct material, special nuclear material, produc- tion facilities, utilization facilities, or atomic weapons or articles involving Restricted Data

Thank you! I'm half brain dead lol.

 

[PommyMommy]

APR 29, 2022
Russian troops leave shattered lives in Makariv (kyivindependent.com)
[...]

Ripped-open buildings and craters are everywhere, the scars of violent battles that repelled the Russians from this strategic town located 30 kilometers west of Kyiv.

Over 200 buildings were destroyed and 600 severely damaged by mortars and artillery. Russians retreated on April 1, after occupying the northern part of the city, from where reports of atrocities keep emerging.

[...]

When Russians tried to take the town on Feb. 28, an old man, his daughter and her eight-year-old girl tried to evacuate. Russians opened fire at them. Only the girl survived, under the corpses of her family, Tokar said. His family survived.

The Russians mainly occupied the northern part of the town. They placed mines and explosives where they lived or looted, and booby traps have been found even in refrigerators and washing machines.

[...]

Maksym, who didn’t want to reveal his full name in case of another Russian attack, said that one of his neighbors was killed after Russians entered his garden with a tank. Some residents saw them loot items from his house.

“We buried him in his garden,” he said. “They took all his tools to fix their tank, the garage was completely destroyed.”

[...]

Maksym pointed out a house nearby.

“A 32-year-old woman was raped there,” he said. “Russian soldiers slit her throat.”

[...]

Mykola Buryak, 62, told the Kyiv Independent the houses nearby were mostly occupied by ethnic Russians and ethnic Siberians such as Buryats.

[...]

The Russian soldier ordered him and his neighbor to do Nazi salutes and laughed watching them. He finally got tired and left them alone.

“He wanted me to insult Ukraine, but I will never say that,” Buryak said. “We’re ready to die here for Ukraine.”

Makariv Chief of Police Oleksandr Omelianenko told the Kyiv Independent that his team keeps exhuming bodies from around Makariv every day. They show the same pattern every time: young males, hands tied behind their backs, shot in the head and dumped into shallow mass graves.

[...]

 

[PommyMommy]

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter - 9 hrs ago
Governor: Russian forces used phosphorus munition in Donetsk Oblast. Russian troops use phosphorus munition in the village of Solovyove, according to Donetsk Oblast Governor Pavlo Kyrylenko.

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter
Forbes Ukraine: Russia fired missiles worth in total at least $7.5 billion. Forbes Ukraine added that only when the class of the launched missiles was identified the price was added into the total count.

(Can you imagine the good that could have been done with $7.5 billion? )

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter - 8 hrs ago
Police say Russian troops tortured, killed combat medic. The 27-year old was murdered in Kharkiv Oblast's Izyum District, Serhiy Bolvinov, the chief investigator of Kharkiv Oblast's police, said on April 29.

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter - 6 hrs ago
Ukrainian troops blow up railway bridge in Donetsk Oblast. The bridge across the Siversky Donets River has been blown up along with Russian rail cars, making it impossible for Russian troops to go by rail to the city of Lyman, the Joint Forces Operation said on April 29.

Euromaidan Press on Twitter - 5 hrs ago
Russian submarine stroke Ukraine with cruise missiles. Reportedly this is the 1st time Russian military used submarine strikes agst Ukraine –Reuters A satellite image collected this morning revealed the loading of probable Kalibr missiles on Kilo-class submarine in Black Sea Sevastopol port @Maxar

NEXTA on Twitter
Newborns in #Mariupol are given birth certificates of self-proclaimed DPR Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights Lyudmila Denisova confirmed this information. She said that issuance of such documents violates rights enshrined in UN Convention on Rights of the Child.

Euromaidan Press on Twitter - 1 hr ago
The psychologist showed a drawing of an 11-year-old boy who was raped by the Russian invaders: he had just started talking The war in Ukraine: another mass grave was found in Kyiv region, – Zelensky (obozrevatel.com) Among the hundreds of Kyiv Oblast residents who have been victims of rape by the Russian soldiers there are children.

Hundreds of Ukrainian women were raped by Russian soldiers | Euromaidan Press

 

[cujenn81]

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter - 9 hrs ago
Governor: Russian forces used phosphorus munition in Donetsk Oblast. Russian troops use phosphorus munition in the village of Solovyove, according to Donetsk Oblast Governor Pavlo Kyrylenko.

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter
Forbes Ukraine: Russia fired missiles worth in total at least $7.5 billion. Forbes Ukraine added that only when the class of the launched missiles was identified the price was added into the total count.

(Can you imagine the good that could have been done with $7.5 billion? )

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter - 8 hrs ago
Police say Russian troops tortured, killed combat medic. The 27-year old was murdered in Kharkiv Oblast's Izyum District, Serhiy Bolvinov, the chief investigator of Kharkiv Oblast's police, said on April 29.

The Kyiv Independent on Twitter - 6 hrs ago
Ukrainian troops blow up railway bridge in Donetsk Oblast. The bridge across the Siversky Donets River has been blown up along with Russian rail cars, making it impossible for Russian troops to go by rail to the city of Lyman, the Joint Forces Operation said on April 29.

Euromaidan Press on Twitter - 5 hrs ago
Russian submarine stroke Ukraine with cruise missiles. Reportedly this is the 1st time Russian military used submarine strikes agst Ukraine –Reuters A satellite image collected this morning revealed the loading of probable Kalibr missiles on Kilo-class submarine in Black Sea Sevastopol port @Maxar

NEXTA on Twitter
Newborns in #Mariupol are given birth certificates of self-proclaimed DPR Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights Lyudmila Denisova confirmed this information. She said that issuance of such documents violates rights enshrined in UN Convention on Rights of the Child.

Euromaidan Press on Twitter - 1 hr ago
The psychologist showed a drawing of an 11-year-old boy who was raped by the Russian invaders: he had just started talking The war in Ukraine: another mass grave was found in Kyiv region, – Zelensky (obozrevatel.com) Among the hundreds of Kyiv Oblast residents who have been victims of rape by the Russian soldiers there are children.

Hundreds of Ukrainian women were raped by Russian soldiers | Euromaidan Press

 

[dotr]

Live updates: Latest news on Russia and the war in Ukraine (cnbc.com)
''Russian forces are concentrating on Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region, but continue to face stiff resistance, the U.K.’s defense ministry said. In the areas Russia has taken under its control, it may soon hold “sham referenda,” U.S. and Ukrainian officials have warned.

In an interview with Saudi-owned Al-Arabiya, Russia’s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said NATO “considers itself” at war with Russia, even though Moscow doesn’t see itself at war with NATO.''

'' HOURS AGO
Russia says it’s not at war with NATO, blames alliance for war in Ukraine
Russia’s foreign minister says Moscow does not consider itself at war with NATO.

In an interview with Saudi Arabia’s Al-Arabiya TV channel, Sergei Lavrov said: “Unfortunately, NATO, it seems, considers itself to be at war with Russia.”

“NATO and European Union leaders, many of them, in England, in the United States, Poland, France, Germany and of course European Union chief diplomat Josep Borrell, they bluntly, publicly and consistently say, ‘Putin must fail, Russia must be defeated,’” he told the network.

“When you use this terminology,” he said, “I believe you think that you are at war with the person who you want to be defeated.”

 

[dotr]

Russia-Ukraine war: US damns Putin’s ‘cruelty and depravity’; Zelenskiy questions lack of powerful response to ‘humiliation’ of UN in Kyiv – live (theguardian.com)
''Mariupol was “beyond a humanitarian catastrophe”, a Ukrainian commander inside the facility said. Serhiy Volyna, from the 36th separate marine brigade, said there were hundreds of people in the steelworks, including 60 young people, the youngest of them four months old. Ukraine hoped to evacuate civilians holed up in the steel plant with the last fighters defending the southern city, Zelenskiy’s office said. The president described the besieged city as a “Russian concentration camp in the middle of ruins”.

• ''The Pentagon press secretary, John Kirby, has spoken of Vladimir Putin’s “cruelty and depravity” in Ukraine, calling his actions “unconscionable” and his justifications for the invasion “BS”. “It’s hard to square his … BS that this is about nazism in Ukraine, and it’s about protecting Russians in Ukraine, and it’s about defending Russian national interests, when none of them, none of them were threatened by Ukraine,” Kirby said. “It’s brutality of the coldest and the most depraved sort.”

 

[Mo Thuairim]

Russian army piles pressure on Putin to unleash its full might on Ukraine

Harsh criticism of the ‘dwarves in the Kremlin’ over failed blitz on capital Kyiv and stalled offensive

When Russian tanks rolled into Ukraine at the end of February, Vladimir Putin dubbed it a “special operation” and barred Russian media from using the word “war”, thinking it would all be over in a few weeks.

More than two months later, the offensive has stalled, and an increasingly impatient Russian military establishment is pushing Putin to declare an “all-out war”.

“The military are outraged that the blitz on Kyiv has failed,” said Irina Borogan, a Russian journalist and author with contacts in the security services.

“People in the army are seeking payback for failures of the past and they want to go further in Ukraine.”

And it seems their calls are being heard. British Defence Secretary Ben Wallace, said yesterday Putin was likely to announce general mobilisation of the Russian population within weeks to make up for military losses.

“He is probably going to declare... that we are now at war with the world’s Nazis and we need to mass mobilise the Russian people,” Mr Wallace said.

The Defence Secretary added that the announcement could come on May 9, when Russia celebrates the victory of the Soviet army over Nazi Germany.

Meanwhile, Gen Valery Gerasimov, the head of the Russian army, has reportedly been dispatched to eastern Ukraine, in a highly unusual move that observers said could be a precursor to an escalation of the conflict.

The Kremlin has in recent years showered the armed forces with funding and praise while sabre-rattling at any opportunity – in part to make up for humiliating military campaigns over the past few decades, including in Afghanistan and Chechnya. The strengthened armed forces now appear to be getting frustrated with Putin’s scaled-down offensive in eastern Ukraine.

Igor Girkin, a retired military intelligence officer better known for leading separatist forces in eastern Ukraine before he was recalled to Moscow in 2014, has over the years provided a window into the thinking of rank-and-file Russian officers.

(...)

After reeling off a list of Moscow’s failures – from the sinking of the flagship of its Black Sea fleet to “acts of sabotage” against infrastructure within Russia – he asked: “What else has to happen before the dwarves in the Kremlin realise they are in an all-out, harsh war and start to act accordingly?”

Alexander Arutyunov, a retired Russian commando and usually one of the country’s most popular pro-Kremlin bloggers, has turned into another voice of discontent. “Vladimir Vladimirovich, can you please make up your mind: are we fighting or are we playing around?” he asked in one emotional video. He questioned why Russia had yet to turn Ukraine’s airfields into “lunar craters”.

Declaring all-out war with Ukraine would entail two things the Kremlin has so far tried to avoid: martial law and mass mobilisation.

Mobilisation would mean Russia will need to call up reservists and keep conscripts beyond their one-year term, a politically fraught decision.

Martial law would close the country’s borders and nationalise large parts of the economy, which is hanging by a thread.

(...)

 

[Mo Thuairim]

How effective was Arnold Schwarzenegger's viral video message to Russia?

"There is research showing that the source of information is less effective if people are forewarned of the persuasion attempt,” says Shane Timmons of the ESRI.

(...)

In the video, Schwarzenegger attempts to cut through the propaganda of the Russian government and state media to highlight atrocities carried out in Ukraine, and to persuade ordinary Russians to turn away from their government’s narrative and see the war for what it really is.

But how effective is the video at achieving this aim? And is it a useful way to combat misinformation?

(...)

“So essentially if people consuming the video are aware that there’s an intent here to persuade me about something, then that can kind of put a psychological barrier up.”

For this reason, Schwarzenegger’s status as a famous celebrity and familiar face may be blunted somewhat if people watching the video are wary that he is trying to change their minds.

“So the effect of a likeable source on people’s willingness to accept information is less strong if people expect that someone is trying to persuade them of something and it’s something that people already feel quite strongly about,” Timmons said.

(...)

Timmons also points out that by appealing to emotion rather than focusing on facts, or prompting Russians to consider the information they are being shown, Schwarzenegger’s video may be less effective at combating misinformation.

“There is research showing that when people are in heightened emotional states their susceptibility to fake news or misinformation actually increases,” he said.

“So the recommended strategy for people to reflect on information and accuracy is to get them to go into that more cerebral, reflective state, rather than an emotional one.”

This could be done by nudging people to consider whether a claim is true or false to analyse something themselves.

“So, prompting people to consider the accuracy of something, to get them to slow down and think, is this something likely to be accurate? That tends to be more effective than trying to heighten emotions.”

(...)

There is also no way of quantifying how many Russians actually saw Schwarzenegger’s video in the first place.

(...)

According to an analysis by Sotrender, a Poland-based analytics website, the video received most of its views and engagements in the Western world. However, the analysis found that within a few days of being posted on Telegram, the video had 800,000 views and was forwarded more than 33,000 times.

(...)

Schwarzenegger did draw the ire of Kremlin-backed state TV, however, with a number of programmes and hosts criticising him, showing that the video may have reached enough Russians to provoke a response.

(...)

Due to the extreme uncertainty and polarisation of wars, and extensive propaganda campaigns by warring nations, they are hotbeds of misinformation.

“We know that uncertainty is something that breeds scope for misinformation. I mean, we saw that during the early stages of the pandemic as well,” said Timmons.

Some of the best approaches to tackling misinformation can be “pre-bunking” or trying to inoculate people against it.

“That’s trying to teach people the methods that are used to spread misinformation and the hallmarks of it.

“That can be kind of effective, but it tends to be an opt-in thing. So you have to kind of want to be inoculated against misinformation and the people who want to be inoculated against it are usually the people who need to be inoculated less.”

(...)