In today's #vatnik soup I'll introduce a Russian politician, spin doctor and one of the most popular Russian bloggers, Oleg Matveychev. But just as much as this soup is about Oleg, it is also about her daughter Danila Ivanov, also known as Lidia Sloutskovski.
1/11
Matveychev has an academic background, and he has PhD in the philosophy of politics and law. He's currently a professor at Financial University in Moscow. In 2021 he was elected as a member of the Russian State Duma.
2/11
Even though he's a superstar in Russia, Matveychev is quite unknown in the West. He's mostly known for his brazen statements about the US "paying reparations" to Russia in form of Alaska and Fort Ross, California.
3/11
He's also suggested that the West is wholly totalitarian and riddled with censorship, and that families will bathe once a week and in winter sleep in their fur coats (do these still exist in Western Europe?).
4/11
In Nov, 2010 while advertising his new book, Matveychev suggested that any kind of opposition in Russia should be "crushed with tanks" and added that "like after Tiananmen in China, we would also have 10% annual economic growth after 20 or 30 years".
5/11
Three days after the invasion had started, Oleg predicted that "three days remain before the capture of Kyiv" and that "Ukraine will not be able to resist for 10 days, [...] Three days remain before the capture of Kiev, Odessa, Zaporozhye, Mykolaiv and other key cities."
6/11
In one of his interviews in 2022,he called NATO a "a cancerous tumor on the body of the planet". In Jan, 2023, he visited Soloyvov's TV show and started judging Germany according to Russia's criminal law, completely forgetting that there are also international laws in place.
7/11
Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation did some thorough digging, and found out that Matveychev's daughter recently got married in Barcelona, and Oleg was naturally there. Her Russian name is Danila Ivanov, but in the West she goes by the name Lidia Sloutskovski.
8/11
Lidia works in an international organization that deals with - believe it or not - ethical issues.Her salary is paid through the Vremya Foundation, founded by one Oleg Matveychev and led by his 74-year old mother. In 2020-2021, Oleg has funneled over 4 million USD to Vremya.
9/11
As of 3rd Feb, 2023, Lidia's profile and information has been removed from the organization's website, but several documents show that she's been involved in its activities in the past. Also, the YouTube video from the wedding has been made private.
10/11
Ironically Matveychev himself has called all Russians who leave Russia "Judases" - apparently this doesn't apply to his own daughter. Here's some travel photos from his trip to the "cancerous tumor".
In today’s Vatnik Soup, I’ll cover the autocratic concept of “Good Tsar, Bad Boyars”: the idea that the leader is wise and just, but constantly sabotaged by corrupt advisors. This narrative shields the ruler from blame, and it’s used by both Putin and Trump today.
1/20
The phrase “Good Tsar, Bad Boyars” (Царь хороший, бояре плохие), also known as Naïve Monarchism, refers to a long-standing idea in Russian political culture: the ruler is good and benevolent, but his advisors are corrupt, incompetent and responsible for all failures.
2/20
From this perception, any positive action taken by the government is viewed as being an accomplishment of the benevolent leader, whereas any negative one is viewed as being caused by lower-level bureaucrats or “boyars”, without the approval of the leader.
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.