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.
1/14
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."
4/14
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".
5/14
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".
6/14
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."
8/14
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.
11/14
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 Vatnik Soup, I’ll introduce a Russian politician and First Deputy Chief of Staff of the Presidential Administration of Russia, Sergey Kiriyenko. He’s best known for running both domestic and foreign disinformation and propaganda operations for the Kremlin.
1/20
On paper, and in photos, Kiriyenko is just as boring as most of the Kremlin’s “political technologists”: between 2005-2016 he headed the Rosatom nuclear energy company, but later played a leading role in the governance of Russia-occupied territories in Ukraine.
2/20
What is a political technologist? In Russia, they’re spin doctors & propaganda architects who shape opinion, control narratives, and manage elections — often by faking opposition, staging events, and spreading disinfo to maintain Putin’s power and the illusion of democracy.
Let me show you how a Pakistani (or Indian, they're usually the same) AI slop farm/scam operates. The account @designbonsay is a prime example: a relatively attractive, AI-generated profile picture and a ChatGPT-style profile description are the first red flags.
1/5
The profile's posts are just generic engagement farming, usually using AI-generated photos of celebrities or relatively attractive women.
These posts are often emotionally loaded and ask the user to interact with them ("like and share if you agree!").
2/5
Then there's the monetization part. This particular account sells "pencil art", which again are just AI-generated slop.
In today’s Vatnik Soup, I’ll introduce an American lawyer and politician, Mike Lee (@BasedMikeLee). He’s best-known for opposing the aid to Ukraine, undermining NATO by calling the US to withdraw from the alliance, and for fighting with a bunch of braindead dogs online.
1/21
Like many of the most vile vatniks out there, “Based Mike” is a lawyer by profession. He hails from the holy land of Mormons, Utah, where he faces little political competition, allowing him to make the most outrageous claims online without risking his Senate seat.
2/21
Before becoming a senator, Mike fought to let a nuclear waste company dump Italian radioactive waste in Utah, arguing it was fine if they just diluted it. The state said no, the public revolted, and the courts told poor Mikey to sit down.
In today’s Vatnik Soup, I’ll introduce an American national security policy professional and the current under secretary of defense for policy, Elbridge Colby (@ElbridgeColby). He’s best-known for fighting with cartoon dogs online and for halting military aid to Ukraine.
1/21
Elbridge "Cheese" Colby earned his bachelor’s degree from Yale and a Juris Doctor from Harvard Law School. Before entering government, he worked at top think tanks and in the intelligence community, focusing on nuclear policy and strategic planning.
2/21
Cheese quickly became a key voice for a “China First” strategy, arguing the US must prioritize military buildup in Asia over commitments in Europe or the Middle East. He sees (or saw, rather) Taiwan as the core test of US credibility.
In today’s Vatnik Soup, I’m going to talk about… Vatnik Soup! As some of you know, we also have a website where you can find every soup ever published. The site also has other useful resources, making it the most comprehensive resource on Russian disinformation & vatniks.
1/15
Unfortunately, Elon has flagged the website as malware, as he might not be very happy about the soups I wrote about him - so far, they have garnered over 60 million views on X/Twitter.
The “freedom of speech” spokesperson doesn’t seem too keen on free speech, after all.
2/15
The heart & soul of the website is of course the soups page. There you can find all 360+ soups, which can be sorted chronologically, by popularity, etc. You can also search for soups by title or even in the soup text: