In today's #vatnik soup I'll introduce a KGB agent and a billionaire who disguises himself as a holy man.His name is Vladimir Mikhailovich Gundyayev,but he's better known as Patriarch Kirill. Gundyayev is a close ally of Putin and he has called Putin's rule a "miracle of god" 1/8
Historian Felix Corley published a study titled "The Mikhailov Files: Patriarch Kirill and the KGB" in 2018. This document revealed that in his past life Gundyayev was actually a KGB agent: academia.edu/37152767/The_M…
2/8
Gundyayev, who has often said that religious people should live a modest life, is also a billionaire - his fortune is estimated to be around 4 billion USD. He owns a yacht and several luxurious real estates around Russia.
3/8
He likes to spend his vacations in a palace in
Gelendzhik. This place is estimated to be worth around 250 million EUR. Vladimir is also not too keen on nature preservation: during the construction several acres of forest, including a rare species of pine, was logged.
4/8
How did Gundyayev get so rich? Through corruption, of course. His church was given a privilege for duty-free importation of cigarettes in the 90s. The Orthodox church became the largest supplier of foreign cigarettes in Russia: digitalcommons.georgefox.edu/ree/vol20/iss6…
5/8
In 2012 🇷🇺 state media photoshopped an image of Gundyayev wearing a 30000USD wristwatch but forgot to remove the watch from the reflection on a table. He stated that the device was edited on his hand, but later admitted that he actually owned this particular Breguet watch. 6/8
Gundyayev has weaponized religion effectively. He sees gay pride parades as a one reason behind the Russia's invasion of Ukraine and has called the war "metaphysical". Gundyayev parrots Putin's talking points about Ukraine... 7/8
... including stories such as "8 years of genocide in Donbass", "neo-nazis in Ukraine" and that "dying for your country brings you to heaven".
He was sanctioned by the EU states in May, 2022, but was later removed from this list due to Hungary's intervention.
8/8
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In today’s #vatniksoup, I’ll discuss the Wagner Group, its founders Yevgeny Prigozhin and Dmitry Utkin, and the mutiny they started on 23 Jun 2023. The event marked the climax of the Wagner Group–Russian MoD conflict, and finally led to the deaths of Prigozhin and Utkin.
1/22
Wagner has been used in many conflicts around the world, but they came to global prominence during the war in Donbas in 2014-2015. Wagnerites helped the Donbas separatists fight against the Ukrainians during the conflict, which helped Putin to “outsource” the insurrection.
2/22
The group doesn’t have any central ideology, but many of its members and leaders have ties to various neo—Nazi movements in Russia. For example, Wagner leader Dmitry Utkin had several Nazi symbols tattooed on his body. Neo—nazi group Rusich has also fights as part of Wagner.
3/22
In today’s #vatniksoup, I’ll introduce an Amsterdam-based propaganda channel, Bonanza Media (@bonanzamedia2). It’s best-known for producing & spreading online pro-Kremlin propaganda videos while closely coordinating & collaborating with the Russian intelligence agency GRU.
1/19
Russian intelligence has been extremely active in the Netherlands for a long time. For example in 2018, four GRU agents were caught while trying to hack into OPCW,an organization that monitors the use of chemical weapons. In addition, the International Criminal Court (ICC)…
2/19
…and the MH17 investigation have become targets for the Russian intelligence and propaganda operations. These operations are often complemented with “investigative journalism” media outlets, that often echo the Kremlin’s propaganda and disinformation.
In today’s #vatniksoup, I’ll talk about the recent EU elections and what are their implications for both the Kremlin and Ukraine. Right-wing political parties, some pro-Kremlin, won a lot of seats around Europe, and this result can also change the EU’s stance on Ukraine.
1/19
But before we start, I want to promote a truck fundraiser I'm doing together with the fantastic @ArturRehi and @69thSB.
Our goal is 20 000 USD, and you can contribute to this important fundraiser here:
EU’s support of Ukraine is essential for their survival against genocidal Russia. So far,this support has been delayed mostly by Orban’s Hungary (& to some degree, Fico’s Slovakia). Now, this support will probably be challenged by many new members of the European Parliament.
3/19
In today’s #vatniksoup, I’ll discuss a specific propaganda/disinformation that the Kremlin likes to use – antisemitism. I also talk about how the Russian society itself has become riddled with antisemitism & how this has led to a decrease in Jewish population in the country.
1/19
Russian antisemitism works on many levels, and their narratives vary depending whether they’re targeting a local audience or people in Europe and the US. For example for the latter, Russia attempts to create a false narrative of Ukraine being an antisemitic “Nazi state”.
2/19
But before diving deeper, let’s look at a survey data of Russians in 2023: Nearly 30 million Russians harbour antisemitic attitudes, and 15% of those surveyed believed that “Jews were responsible for most of the world’s wars.” 38% think that the Jews have...
In today’s #vatniksoup, I’ll introduce a Ukrainian media personality and propagandist, Diana Panchenko (@Panchenko_X). She’s best-known for betraying her own country by peddling anti-Zelenskyy and anti-Ukraine propaganda and disinformation for the Kremlin.
1/22
Panchenko was born in 1988 in the Mykolaev Oblast in Ukrainian SSR in 1988. She studied publishing and editing at the Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute and later graduated from Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv with a degree in law.
2/22
After graduating, Diana worked briefly for the news site . Between 2010 and 2015, Panchenko was a presenter for KyivTV, but she found her true calling as a pro-Kremlin propagandist after she was hired by a national “news channel” called NewsOne.