Thread by @YevYevhenii

I've read the TIME interview with Navalnaya so you don't have to.

There are many things that are simply incorrect, but there's one point where she is particularly mistaken, and I'll explain why.

She believes that there is a 'mistake of the Ukrainian government.'

She talks about how Ukrainians and Russians are like one family, and many of us have mixed families, which is true. However, what is not true is her assertion that Russians wouldn't support the war because of these connections.

When she suggests that it's not Russia's war but Putin's war, the interviewer corrects her by mentioning his conversation with President Zelensky:

"I’ve spoken about this with President Zelensky and his team, and they don’t believe this.

Their views on this have evolved over time, but by the end of 2022, they had concluded that this is not just Putin’s war. It is Russia’s war, and it is wrong to go around looking for what they call 'good Russians.'"

She says:

"Regular Ukrainians understand that not all Russians are against them. But when it comes to the Ukrainian government, I think it would be right for them to remember these people. This is clearly not Russia’s war. This is Putin’s war.

Of course, there is a very aggressive, pro-war minority. It stands out, but it’s very small. Putin does his best to promote it. He points to them and says, 'Look, everyone is like this!' But that’s not true. Most people, for different reasons, want an end to this war."

And she's wrong. I want to remind her and you that Russia's war against Ukraine started in 2014. Zelensky was elected in 2019 as a candidate who believed in consensus with Russia; he was seen as not hardline enough for many Ukrainians.

When the war started in 2014, many Ukrainians who had families in Russia tried to reason with them. My family was one of them. But instead, we were met with Russian supremacism.

We were told that Russians know better what is really happening and that we, like younger siblings, just have to listen and accept their choices. We are family to them, but not equals.

That's why many Ukrainians, including myself, were shocked by the naivety of Zelensky when, in the first days of the war, he recorded an appeal to Russians in Russian. Obviously, at that stage, it was good to use any opportunity, but we knew that it wouldn't change anything.

We had had the opportunity to make such appeals for eight years before him. They didn't want to listen.

So, no, it's not the Ukrainian government that doesn't want to search for anti-war Russians.

it's us Ukrainians who have had families and friends in Russia, who spoke Russian their entire lives, who read Russian books, and listened to Russian music. For us, myself included, it was clear back in 2014 that we weren't and won't be treated equally.

We are younger siblings who have to listen and obey, and that's what Navalnaya wants us to be, that's what her husband wanted us to be.

We just have to listen to them, but no one will listen to us in return. I have one piece of advice for Navalnaya: maybe try listening to Ukrainians, though alas, it may not be heard. (:

also why the fuck we have to explain that it's not Putin's war in 2024!111

I just want to add that of course there are anti-war Russians, but that doesn't make this war any less Russian.

Navalnaya's desire to find these Russians is self-serving, ok here is an anti-war Russian, what do we do with them now? are they ready to support Ukraine's victory?

do they want decolonization of russia? are they ready to recognize the mistakes russians have made, all the harm they have done to the colonized? there are so many questions...