In today's #vatnik soup, I'll introduce the despote that rules over Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov. He is the son of Akhmad Kadyrov, who switched sides during the Second Chechen War, offering his services to Putin to become the President of the Chechen Republic.
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For this, Akhmad was assassinated by Chechen Islamists in 2004, and Ramzan took his position in 2007. Ramzan rules the Chechens through despotism and repression of human rights, and Human Rights Watch has accused him of crimes against humanity.
2/14
He's been connected to multiple kidnappings, assassinations and torture of human rights activists, critics and their relatives both in Russia and abroad. He's been connected to murders of a journalist Anna Politkovskaya and Russian opposition figure Boris Nemtsov.
3/14
Between 2001-2014 80% of Chechnya's budget consisted federal subsidies from Russia. Most of this money have filled Ramzan's and his cronies pockets:in 2010 Medvedev said that "federal funds often do not reach people; [...] it is obvious-they are being stolen."
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In 2005, Kadyrov stated that "Europe's largest mosque" would replace the demolished downtown of Grozny. Russia has pumped a lot of money to rebuild Grozny (like they do now with Mariupol) in order to show that "everything's better after Russia takes over".
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In 2006, Ramzan built a presidential palace with a price tag of 54 million USD. This complex included a five-star hotel and recreational facilities. Later he closed down refugee camps in Chechnya, calling the refugees "international spies".
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In '11 he invited the Brazilian winning team from '02 to play against a Chechen team, including Kadyrov. He stated that the Brazilians were not paid and "came out of goodwill", & he even managed to score 2 goals in this game! We also saw a glimpse of Ramzan's football skills.7/14
Once COVID-19 hit Chechnya, Ramzan stated that people who violate quarantine rules should be killed. On May, 2020, he flew to Moscow after developing flu-like symptoms similar to COVID-19. The next day he declared that "he had a right to be sick."
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After the 2022 invasion in Ukraine began, Kadyrov was said to be taking part in an operation outside of Kyiv. Later he posted a photo of himself praying outside a Rosneft Pulsar gas station, stating that he was in Mariupol. Pulsar does not operate in Ukraine.
9/14
In another instance, he posted a video which suggested that he was meeting troops in Mariupol, but he was hosting a meeting in Grozny on the same day.
During the invasion, he's called for full mobilization (but not in Chechnya) and use of nuclear weapons.
10/14
Remember all those TikTok videos of Chechens shooting at walls? They are actually part of the "Akhmad Regiment", a group of terrorists and Kadyrov's personal army. Their main function is to protect Chechnya from unrest, and most of all keep Ramzan and his cronies safe.
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Even though there's plenty of comedy and satire around Kadyrov, he's a ruthless murderer - Chechnya's leadership has an active "Murder List" and several prominent Chechens have been murdered abroad.
12/14
Kadyrov is good friends with Vladislav Surkov, and Mikhail Khodorkovsky has suggested that there are two factions fighting for power in the Russian military leadership: Shoigu & Gerasimov versus Kadyrov and Prigozhin.
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.