Thread by @jseldin

BREAKING: #Russia-state media carrying word of Vladimir Putin's decision to launch "special operation" in #Donbas #Ukraine

MORE: #Russia|n President Vladimir Putin said the special military operation in #Ukraine "will strive for demilitarization & de-Nazification...as well as bringing to justice those who committed numerous bloody crimes against civilians"

via @RFERL

MORE: "No one should have any doubt that a direct attack on #Russia will lead to defeat & terrible consequences for a potential aggressor" per Vladimir #Putin in announcing "special operation" vs #Ukraine

via @RFERL

Latest from #Russia|n media on "special operation" vs #Ukraine

From #Russia's Sputnik media in Spanish - Putin accusing @NATO of supporting neo-Nazis in #Ukraine

Earlier Wednesday, @StateDept spox warned of #Kremlin #disinformation campaigns...

#Russia|n state-run media now saying there are explosions in #Kyiv #Odessa and other cities in #Ukraine

Western leaders are condemning #Russia's invasion of #Ukraine as a "brutal act" & a "blatant violation" of int'l law & norms

Russian media pushes back, quoting the foreign ministry as saying this is an attempt to prevent a global war

Meanwhile, #Russia's RT quotes the #Kremlin as saying the invasion of #Ukraine is "the prerogative of the president, who makes the calls on its goals and terms"

#Russia|n influence ops/info wars in full swing - accusing West, @NATO of "supporting far-right nationalists and neo-Nazis in #Ukraine"

But Western officials have said, if anything, the evidence proves the opposite is true....

"Former intelligence officials and analysts told VOA that even before the 2020 election, Moscow was finding ways to ingratiate a stable of influence peddlers to U.S. audiences on the far right..."
voanews.com/a/russia-fine-…

"More recently, an assessment by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence obtained by Yahoo News concluded the Kremlin is providing "indirect and passive support" to U.S. groups on the far right..."
voanews.com/a/russia-fine-…

There is also evidence that pro-#Russia|n forces have been recruiting white supremacists/neo-Nazis for years
voanews.com/a/usa_white-su…

Also worth noting in 2020, the US designated the Russian Imperial Movement (RIM) as a global terrorist organization, saying the #Russia-based group provides paramilitary-style training to neo-Nazis, white supremacists
voanews.com/a/usa_us-desig…

And as far back as 2018, #Estonia's foreign intelligence service was warning of #Russia courting, supporting, cultivating "politicians that have been in the margins..."
voanews.com/a/networks-of-…