In his speech ahead of Sunday’s Victory Day celebrations across Russia, President Vladimir Putin continued to promote the idea that his troops are fighting in Ukraine “to liberate their homeland from the Nazi garbage with the confidence that, like in 1945, the victory will be ours.” His portrayal of Ukrainians as Nazis sounds so hollow that propagandists on state television are struggling to justify the so-called “special military operation.” The description itself was intended to portray an almost painless blitzkrieg akin to the annexation of Crimea. Instead, it has turned into an ongoing bloody massacre and a slew of crippling sanctions.
Russia was so unprepared for this turn of events, both militarily and economically, that even the most pro-Kremlin propagandists have been forced to recognize the grim reality of a pariah state waging a war of aggression.
During the state television program broadcast on Friday The evening with Vladimir Solovyovmilitary analyst Konstantin Sivkov argued that Russia’s “current economic market system under these conditions is unsuitable for meeting the needs of our armed forces and of the entire country.” Instead, he pushed for what he described as “military socialism,” a set of wartime rules and regulations that would put all strategic resources — including land and factories — under the direct control of the government to better fund the war.
During the same show, host Vladimir Solovyov lamented that Russia could not compete with Ukraine’s seemingly endless supply of Turkish-made Bayraktar drones, which have wreaked havoc on Russian troops and equipment. “From the front line they say to us: ‘Give us drones!’ People are crowdfunding insane amounts. They bought up everything that was for sale in the stores. Why can’t that junk be mass-produced in Russia?”, Solovyov smoked.
State Duma member Semyon Bagdasarov chimed in: “Everyone is ashamed to talk about this topic. Volunteers, like our mutual acquaintances… buy it all up and transport it there. It is a shame!” Solovyov angrily complained about the restrictions that hamper the delivery of such items to Russian troops in Ukraine, adding: “It is easier to bring it in through Ukrainian customs in Lviv. They let in all the weapons.”
Bagdasarov then resorted to to blame the West for the Kremlin’s humiliations, claiming that the recent sanctions were intended to provoke a popular uprising, similar to the October Revolution of 1917 or the Soviet coup d’état of 1991, otherwise known as the Augustan Revolution. coup. To avoid the possible riots, Bagdasarov suggested the need for “purges” of current “management officials”. He claimed that Russia desperately needs a figure like Lavrentiy Beria – head of the Soviet secret police notorious for its serial rapes and bloody mass executions.
This is an attempt to whitewash, if not news, detestable figures of the past on the Russian airwaves. Shortly before the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February, Vesti Nedeli Dmitry Kiselyov praised Joseph Stalin, Lavrentiy Beria, Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, among others, for Russia’s nuclear capabilities.
During Friday’s live broadcast 60 minutesretired Colonel Mikhail Khodaryonok made the stunning confession that even mass mobilization in Russia would not help change the course of Putin’s stalled invasion of Ukraine. He admitted that Russia would have a hard time making up for its mounting losses in Ukraine, and that it would be counterproductive to fight masses with outdated weapons, as Russia’s arsenal is no match for NATO’s top weapons.
“Let’s imagine the drum roll, the sound of fanfare, and the mobilization is announced. Under this mobilization, how soon will we get the first fighter aircraft regiment? We were supposed to get it at New Years. We don’t have the reserves, the pilots or the planes, so mobilization wouldn’t help much,” Khodaryonok said. “If we order new ships tonight, how soon will we get the first one? In two years! That’s the deal with mobilization. If we set ourselves the goal of forming a new tank division, when would it be ready? I would say within 90 days. And it wouldn’t be equipped with modern weapons because we don’t have modern weapons and equipment in our reserves.”
Russians caught at bitchfest over Putin’s ‘bullshit’ victory day
The retired colonel continued: “Sending people armed with old-time weapons into a 21st century war to fight against NATO’s global standard weapons would not be right. We must of course make up for our losses, but this must be done through industrial companies. Mobilization would not solve these problems.”
In December 2021, will be published on 60 minutesKhodaryonok said lightly that Russia could destroy Ukraine in 11 minutes, but in early February – when Putin’s invasion seemed almost imminent – the Colonel was much brighter. His sobering predictions, published in the newspaper Independent military observerwere remarkably accurate.
Khodaryonok contradicted many popular analysts, partly stating: “To claim that no one in Ukraine will defend the regime means in practice complete ignorance of the military-political situation and the mood of the broad masses of people in the neighboring state. In addition, the degree of hatred (which, as you know, is the most effective fuel for armed struggle) in the neighboring republic towards Moscow is grossly underestimated. No one will meet the Russian army in Ukraine with bread, salt and flowers.”
Khodaryonok correctly predicted long and difficult battles, in addition to the extensive aid the West would provide to Ukraine, writing in part: “There is no doubt that the United States and the countries of the North Atlantic Alliance will begin a kind of reincarnation of Lend. -Lease, modeled after World War II.”
Putin’s front men: He can destroy us all, but we are ready to die
While open opposition to Putin’s war on Ukraine is prohibited, it is clear that the Russian people are resisting in several unconventional ways. A series of fires have erupted at several military recruiting offices in recent days as rumors of the impending mobilization confuse potential conscripts.
Putin’s propagandists have apparently been brought in to convince the public that the outcome of the Russian invasion is a matter of life and death for all of its citizens. State television pundit Karen Shakhnazarov, who previously pleaded with Putin to end the war as soon as possible, returned to national broadcasts last week after a temporary absence with a drastically different story.
During three separate broadcasts of The evening with Vladimir Solovyov, Shakhnazarov claimed that Russians would find “no mercy” from their opponents if the country lost the war. He threatened opponents of Putin’s invasion and predicted they would face a future of “concentration camps, re-education and compulsory sterilization” imposed as a “final solution” for the Russian people sought by Moscow’s enemies. While some Kremlin propagandists begrudgingly admit that Russia cannot afford to wage this war, the prevailing narrative fed by the state media is that Russia cannot afford to lose.
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