Kevin Rothrock Profile picture
hyper-professional Russia guy, many years at @meduza_en. ✉️: kevin at https://t.co/bTxh2aXPPk / kevinrothrock@bsky.social / kevinrothrock@infosec.exchange
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Sep 27, 2023 27 tweets 8 min read
Provocative article published last month in Russian Politics tackles now common assumption in West and by anti-Kremlin groups that Putin ordered FSB to bomb apartments in Sept 1999 to boost his presidential momentum. Author suggests that Berezovksy & MVD are likelier culprits. You might be asking why this needs revisiting now, but the premise is excellent: we seem to read about potential false flag operations in Ukraine every week, so reexamining these allegations ostensibly at the heart of Putin’s rise to power is well-timed indeed.
Aug 28, 2023 10 tweets 4 min read
Some thoughts on my favorite Russian villains from Hollywood movies. In no particular order, let's start with Air Force One. Remember Gary Oldman as Egor Korshunov? I think he dies when a parachute gets wrapped around his neck. Kinda like Mark Strong at the end of Sherlock. Image Theon Greyjoy's dad in John Wick calls Keanu Reeves "Baba Yaga," which is meant to be the same as "The Bogeyman" but actually means "that old witch lady who lives in the woods in the house on chicken legs." (The new Hellboy did a gross rendition of her.) Image
Jun 28, 2023 7 tweets 3 min read
More than an hour after this was initially reported, I’m not seeing any additional corroboration. Just this morning, Kremlin spox Peskov was very dismissive when asked about the NYT report claiming that Surovikin had advance knowledge of the mutiny… https://t.co/YW7xyQ83I2t.me/youlistenedmay…
Journalist Alexey Venediktov says Surovikin hasn’t been in contact with his family for three days. Also, the general’s security detail isn’t answering the phone, he claims. t.me/aavst2022/5477
Jun 24, 2023 6 tweets 1 min read
Here we go. Putin is repeating the Defense Ministry’s language about Prigozhin being a “criminal scammer.”
Jun 24, 2023 5 tweets 1 min read
Just wow. A video has surfaced showing Prigozhin at the Southern Military District HQ in Rostov-on-Don talking to (and HUMILIATING) Deputy Defense Minister Yunus-bek Yevkurov. He threatens to blockade Rostov and head for Moscow!

I have extreme trouble understanding Yevkurov and… https://t.co/jGr9gaLB1itwitter.com/i/web/status/1…
P.S. And, yes, I bought a month of Twitter Blue so I could post this slightly longer video.
Jun 23, 2023 4 tweets 2 min read
This is the closest Russia has been to a coup since the early 1990s. Evgeny Prigozhin has effectively declared war on the Defense Ministry after what he says was a Russian missile attack against his men. And in a follow-up audio clip, Prigozhin appears to be calling on “the entire nation” to join him in the fight against the Defense Ministry’s leadership. A coup or a mutiny, you decide.
Jun 23, 2023 5 tweets 1 min read
Interesting post from political scientist Vladimir Pastukhov arguing that a "2nd front" of the war has emerged in Europe between Kyiv & the Russian democratic opposition in exile. The latter undermines Ukraine's initiative to make Russia a black & white issue for the West. 1/4 The West backs Kyiv, but dominant narratives about the war could shift, making it logical for Ukraine to maximize attention on itself. The only acceptable Russia oppo is the kind writing Russia's obituary, etc. 2/4
Jun 22, 2023 4 tweets 1 min read
Ukrainian officials have been urging the U.S. & Europe to provide them with cluster munitions, one of the world’s most controversial weapons, banned by more than 120 nations, because of the dangers they pose to civilians long after wars are over. themessenger.com/news/cluster-m… Grim ending: “We’ve run low on the regular munitions so they’re looking for more sources of artillery ammunition.” The most compelling thing about cluster munitions is that “they're there,” said Mark Cancian, a senior adviser w/ the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
Jun 22, 2023 4 tweets 1 min read
Interesting thread. As someone who started studying Russian in UC Santa Cruz classrooms in 2001, I can tell you that the "nobody cares about this anymore" vibe was strong more than 20 years ago, long before the Crimea annexation. I assume the current geopolitics will resuscitate interest in Russian somewhat, just like Arabic got a boost during the War on Terror, but it's undeniable that Russian lang & culture are miles away from most things the typical American cares about even a little.
Jun 21, 2023 4 tweets 1 min read
Quite the deep dive into a weirdo who was either a "low-IQ Russian asset" or a quirky grifter who managed to trade obscurity in California for a ticket to (very) moderate stardom in Moscow. I'm sure the Russian-speaking community out there in SoCal is less than thrilled to know he absconded to Moscow with footage of their interactions, though it's hard to imagine he could have gathered much of use.
Jun 16, 2023 4 tweets 1 min read
“Are they ready to start a war to send their children? Are they ready to die?” he said when asked about Trump and DeSantis. “If Russia occupies Ukraine, they will move on [...] and the U.S. will have to choose between dismantling NATO or fighting.” nbcnews.com/news/world/ukr… This comment, it seems to me, represents much of the challenge for Kyiv, given that NATO isn't an everyday concept to most Americans (though it enjoys the political establishment's overwhelming support), and the Orange Man even scored points by dunking on NATO freeloaders.
Jun 15, 2023 4 tweets 2 min read
Rostov-based antiwar activist Anatoly Berezikov has reportedly died in jail. Officials told @OvdInfo that he killed himself, but his lawyer says he was being tortured in custody. Berezikov posted leaflets from the “I Want to Live” Ukrainian civic project. t.me/ovdinfo/18471 @OvdInfo Here’s his lawyer, Irina Gak, explaining some of the abuse Berezikov faced from the authorities. She says officials appear to have tortured him to death. t.me/ovdinfo/18470
Jun 14, 2023 5 tweets 2 min read
Ukraine’s “lead elements” are trying to set the conditions for a breakthrough in the early stage of the counteroffensive, explains @Jack_Watling. Fighting at Russia’s main defense line, still some 10 miles away, will be “tougher.” rusi.org/explore-our-re… @Jack_Watling Three aims, so far: (1) a “counterbattery duel” to strike each other’s logistics, command and control, reconnaissance, and artillery systems, (2) force Russia to commit its reserves & move troops from 3rd defense line, (3) advance as broadly as possible to stretch Russian troops.
Jun 6, 2023 6 tweets 2 min read
From last month in the NYT on the Nova Kakhovka (which either just blew up or collapsed suddenly). After letting the reservoir levels reach a historic low, Russian occupation forces let it reach a 30-year high. Both sides have risked the dam’s safety with artillery/explosions. ImageImageImage nytimes.com/2023/05/17/wor…
May 31, 2023 4 tweets 1 min read
This is ugly. Team Navalny member Dmitry Nizovtsev (he hosts a YouTube show and used to be a campaign member in Khabarovsk) berates Ilya Leshukov, another activist from Arkhangelsk whom Team Navalny helped reach Georgia, for criticizing planned anti-war protests on June 4. The Anti-Corruption Foundation provided the $325 or so that Leshukov needed for a plane ticket. Writing on his personal Telegram channel to an audience of 96 (!) subscribers, Leshukov said protesting in Russia is too dangerous now, better to donate secretly to Ukraine’s military.
May 31, 2023 5 tweets 1 min read
So, Tara Reade has “fled” to Russia, where she says she will ask Putin for citizenship, leaning on help from State Duma deputy and TV propagandist Maria Butina (yes, her). She did a press conference on Tuesday with Sputnik. It lasted MORE THAN NINE HOURS. youtube.com/live/sXgazjmT0… Obviously, I’m not going to watch this, but I keep skipping around and expecting to find a Tom & Jerry cartoon dropped in the middle somewhere. Nope! It’s really that long.
May 29, 2023 5 tweets 2 min read
Looks like he did say "dying," otherwise I assume he would have corrected the record here. P.S. opening a criminal case isn't the same as issuing an arrest warrant. You're only under investigation, Lindsey. Needless to say, "Russians are dying, [aid to Ukraine] is a great deal for Washington," likely expresses the rationale for many in DC, but saying this "quiet part out loud" undermines American democracy rhetoric & boosts the folks who say it's just Uncle Sam playing power games.
May 28, 2023 4 tweets 2 min read
The Russian state media has just noticed this meeting from a few days ago between Zelensky & Senator Lindsey Graham, where the latter allegedly says, "And the Russians are dying. Itʼs the best money we ever spent," though he seems to have said, "and the Russians are down." Or maybe "And the Russians are done," but I don't hear "dying." Likely, he wouldn't have used a definite article if he were talking about "Russians dying."
May 25, 2023 6 tweets 2 min read
I finally got around to reading the Schwarz and Layne article in Harpers. Sharing it on Twitter with the replies unlocked is probably a recipe for NAFO dogshit, but I for one welcome the warnings about U.S. messianism. harpers.org/archive/2023/0… “The post-Cold War U.S. became a revolutionary force in world politics” is a powerful sentence. Students of Russian history know how dangerous revolutionary ideology and policymaking can be. Does a “crusade” sound like a good thing to you? That’s what Manichean foreign policy is.
May 18, 2023 6 tweets 2 min read
An interesting debate broke out last week among Russian oppositionists and intellectuals: is Navalny-style anti-corruption activism helping or hurting the cause? It was prompted by FBK's investigation into Boris Obnosov, the head of the Tactical Missiles Corporation. Is investigating corrupt defense-industry officials just helping the Putin regime? Yes, say folks like Maria Snegovaya, Max Katz, and Vladislav Inozemtsev. The latter wrote an essay for Republic about this. republic.ru/posts/108385
May 17, 2023 10 tweets 2 min read
Yesterday, Meduza released a new investigative report from @lilia_yapparova about how the FSB recruits former ISIS combatants for intel gathering on Ukrainian battalions & even uses them for hired killings & money laundering. A translation is in the works! meduza.io/feature/2023/0… In the meantime, here's the gist: the star of the story is an ex-ISIS fighter named Baurzhan Kultanov who fled ISIS-held territory to Turkey in 2014, only to be deported back to Russia after officials learned that he’d concealed his ISIS past in his asylum application.