“NATO provoked Russia to invade Ukraine”

Although Russia's invasion of Ukraine began in 2014, the first attempts were made in 2003.

This is a thread about a brazen attempt by Russians to seize the island of Tuzla despite good neighbourly relations with Ukraine at the time ⬇️ At the start of the 20th century, Tuzla Spit was part of the Taman Peninsula, where locals fished and grazed cattle.

A storm in 1925 washed away the thin isthmus, turning Tuzla into an island. Fishermen widened the waterway, and the gap between Tuzla and the mainland has since grown.

In 1941, the island was transferred from Krasnodar Territory to Crimea, and in 1954, it became part of the Ukrainian SSR. The final border with Krasnodar was settled in 1973.

The massive destruction of nature reserves in Ukraine is nothing less than ecocide.

Russians are destroying forests, rivers, and steppes. Thousands of flora and fauna species are endangered.

I have collected the most extensive examples of Russian crimes against nature⬇️ The destruction of the Kakhovka Dam by Russian forces in June 2023 unleashed an estimated 18 cubic kilometres of water, flooding over 80 settlements and displacing more than 40,000 people.

The flood devastated the Dnipro River’s ecosystem, killing an estimated 95% of fish in the affected areas, with millions of fish carcasses polluting the waters. Over 55,000 hectares of farmland were submerged, threatening Ukraine's agricultural output. Toxic pollutants from at least 150 industrial facilities spilt into the floodwaters, contaminating the Dnipro River and the Black Sea.

A few months ago, I found the courage to watch the most important documentary ever: 20 Days in Mariupol.

I thought I would be torn to pieces and cry. But it was worse. I was enveloped in emptiness.

This led me to some difficult conclusions. I couldn't even express my emotions because it's hard to imagine a human reaction that could adequately respond to this horror.

It's all just hard to believe. It all looks too grotesque, too cynical, too... horribly unbelievable.

You have probably already heard that Russians have destroyed the authentic monument of world importance in Crimea — the Tauric Chersonese.

Here are some facts about how Russians did it.

And yes, they've already launched a propaganda campaign to justify their vandalism. In 2015, the Russians poured concrete over a section of an ancient estate at Cape Chersonesus, marking the beginning of ongoing destruction.

The occupants have consistently damaged the site through construction activities, compromising its integrity and authenticity.

The Moscow attack suspects faced electric shock torture similar to methods used in the “Izolyatsia” camp in Donetsk since 2014.

Yes, this device, which is connected to the genitals, is for torture by electric shock.

More details and the UN report are in this horrifying thread. “Izolyatsia” is a modern concentration camp, equipped by Russia on the site of a former insulation materials factory in the temporarily Russian-occupied territory of Ukraine in Donetsk.

Prior to Russia's 2014 invasion, this location served as a hub for cultural activities.

9 things Ukrainians went through after February 24, 2022

It's impossible to describe everything we've been through in these 2 years in one short thread. Nevertheless, I want to describe the most important things.

Read, like, repost, reply, and support Dzyga’s Paw. 1. Devastation

Thousands of buildings, streets, villages, and cities were destroyed by Russians. These are pieces of our souls that have been cut out.

Nobody should ever experience such terrible things. Except for Russians.

In 2014, Russia invaded the Donetsk and Luhansk Oblast.

This was partly possible because of people who believed in Russia's good intentions. They thought that with the arrival of Russia, Donbas would become more prosperous and happier.

What Russian help does look like🧵⬇️ Russia always builds torture chambers in the occupied territories.

Izolyatsia is a former factory that was turned into a prison. According to the report of the OHCHR, detainees were subjected to torture, including electric shock, mock executions, and sexual violence.

How are Russian prisoners of war being held in Ukraine? You'll be shocked.

I recently watched a special project by Dmitry Gordon and the Ukrainian state program for voluntary surrender, “I Want to Live”.

In the thread, I prepared the most notable things about it ⏬ When a prisoner of war enters the camp, they are first examined by a doctor. Then they can wash themselves and get a haircut. There's hot water available all time.

Then they go into a two-week quarantine area to ensure they do not infect other soldiers.

Russia rarely says about the price that was paid by other Soviet republics on the Eastern Front during World War II. For the last decades, they implied as only Russia was the one who fought.

Here is a list of estimated casualties of USSR republics during WWII. Ukraine

Military Deaths: 1.4-1.6 million
Civilian Deaths: 3.5-4 million
Total Deaths: 5-6 million
Wounded: 4.2-4.6 million
Captured or Missing: 400,000-600,000
Population in 1941: 41.9 million
Percentage of Total Deaths to Population: 12%-14.3%

Soon, Russians will celebrate the 9th of May.

For decades the Russian government has brainwashed the population and made something incredibly wild out of this day.

Let's consider the Russian recipe for “Victory Day”. It all starts with the children.

Many do not understand how Russians can be capable of the crimes they committed in Chechnya, Syria, Bucha, Bakhmut and hundreds of other places.

Since childhood, militaristic ideas have been aggressively planted in their heads.

Personally, I have always admired Russian propaganda. Don't get me wrong — it is just a scientific interest. Russian propaganda is multifaceted and one of the few things Russians do well.

I want to show you one of the implicit examples of Russian propaganda — Anatoliy Shariy. Shariy is not a “classique” propagandist. He is not an open Z fan like Skabeeva, Solovyev or myriads of Russian war correspondents. He is much more careful and slippery.

You think there are few of Russian volunteers? Or maybe that Russian army is supported only by its government? You're mistaken.

So was I.

Learn how ordinary Russians supply their army in the🧵 I want to start with this hilarious one. I really laughed so hard.

Russian occupant returned home. Fanis Gilvanov, head of the administration of the city of Agidel, solemnly awarded the soldier with the powerbank.

Just look how official this is 😂

Remember: there are no limits in the Russian aggression. They will use any chance to spoil your life, to make you weaker, to obey their humiliating demands.

S.T.A.L.K.E.R. will be amazing and I urge you to pre-order one.

https://twitter.com/stalker_thegame/status/1634939872317411329

Here I have to remind you about Volodymyr Yezhov, who was killed defending the city of Bakhmut on December 22.

He was one of the developers behind the successful video game S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky, which was released in 2008.

Russians kill the best people.

Ukrainian music! 🎧

I chose remarkable pieces for you. The thread contains plenty of genres and songs from different times😊

Please, share the music from your country in the 🧵 It was quite a surprise for me when I found out about Ukrainian Jazz from the 70s. Зоряна ніч (Starry Night) is my favourite one!

There are so many debates about US or European colonialism and imperialism. Russians love to push this discussion.

But it's usually forgotten that Russian Federation is not a country. It’s a colonial empire that oppresses indigenous cultures. 13 nationalities have disappeared from the ethnographic map of Russia. Many processes that led to the reduction of the population, and then the disappearance of some nationalities, were launched during the heyday of the Russian Empire.

We're losing our best people. There would be fewer losses if the World stopped playing peace games with bloody Russian aggressors.

https://twitter.com/SESU_UA/status/1630138186365059073

Fuck, 21 and 31 years old. They are so young. It's just incomprehensible!

And then you see the opinions of Elon Musk and other Russian apologists. It just tears your heart apart. How is it even possible to support Russia if you have at least a chunk of common sense?

I'm humbled to see how many beautiful people subscribed to me. Thank you so much.

Today is a great day to make a proper introduction. I'd like to tell you about the past year and my experience of volunteering in the best project ever — @dzygaspaw 🐾 My name is Rinat Botchenko. I'm a Ukrainian product designer and a bit of an entrepreneur. I'm also a co-founder of upcycling glass project — @melancholy_ua. Someday I will tell you more about it :)

(I like to spoil photos)

Cultural genocide conducted by Russians roots back centuries. In this thread, I collected vivid examples of Russian attempts to vanish Ukrainian culture in the 17-18th centuries.

These are only a few of the numerous ethnocide examples. 1622 — the order of Michael I, at the request of Moscow Patriarch Filaret, to burn in the state all copies of K. Stavrovtsky's "Teacher's Gospel" printed in Ukraine.

There are myriads of apparent reasons why Ukrainians are fighting. But in this thread, I’d like to consider other, not entirely obvious, reasons.

Why don’t Ukrainians accept the Russian world? What is the Russian proposal for the world order? Here I won’t include facts about Russian terrorist attacks on the civil infrastructure or rapings. It’s almost impossible, but I will consider their “pure proposal” without those crimes.