In today's #vatnik soup I'll discuss the "decadent West" and how the USSR and Russian policies has affected their culture and society. One of the most persistent narratives that the Kremlin has touted is the collapse of Western civilization. 1/12
Based on their propaganda, this is due to straying from "traditional values" and promotion of gender equality, human rights and multiculturalism. This is by no means a new thing - "the decaying west" was already portrayed in Russia in the 19th century. 2/12
This trope evokes weakly defined concepts such as "tradition", "family values" and "spirituality". Russia considers itself as a counterweight to Western decadence and this is one of their key narratives in disinformation campaigns conducted in the West. 3/12
This has led to some outlandish claims, such as the concept of "father" and "mother" have been cancelled and they're replaced with "parent 1 and 2", and that Western children learn at school that "Jesus was bisexual". 4/12
But if you look at the statistics,🇷🇺 is by no means a last bastion of traditional values.Their legislation & cultural brainwashing has caused multiple negative societal byproducts. In '22,🇷🇺 had the highest divorce rate in the world with annually 3,9 divorces per 1000 people.5/12
Alcohol use in Russia has declined in the two decades, but in 2018 Russia still had the highest rate of alcohol-deaths in the world. I'm sure that the Russo-Ukraine War isn't going to help this situation a lot (unless Russia runs out of alcohol due to the sanctions). 6/12
And it's not just alcohol: Russia has suffered from widespread injection drug use with 2% of the population using IV drugs. In 2020, over 7000 people died from illicit drugs. 7/12
This epidemic has led to another negative phenomenon: HIV/AIDS is a huge problem in Russia.
According to 2019 data, Russia has 1,06 million people with HIV/AIDS and in 2018, 37 000 people died from AIDS. 8/12
Human trafficking is a huge problem in Russia, and they are placed in the worst tier (Tier 3) in the Trafficking in Persons Report ranking system. For example in 2007, an incident of forced prostitution and mass murder was uncovered in Nizhny Tagil. 8/11
A gang abducted a group of girls and forced them into prostitution, killing those who refused. A mass grave with up to 30 bodies was later discovered in the area. 10/12
Russia leads the developed world with the worst sanitation and sewer record. 23% live without a centralized sewage system and 6% lacks a sewage system altogether. In rural Russia, approx. two-thirds have no access to indoor toilets. 11/12
As with everything in Russia, there is a large contrast between the major cities and rural areas.
As we can see from these examples, Russia is far away from the traditional utopia they claim to be. Even their "spirituality" is just another front for criminal activity. 12/12
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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.