Today I've come across the article named Russia's soft power and great patriotic war
As I am allergic to Russofophobia I wrote a large comment on it, but it has been deleted surely as an unwanted opinion. So, I´ve decided to leave it here.
As a comment has to be relatively short, I wrote my opinion on first two paragraphs of the article.
For the convinience of the reader I am copying it below
As Ukraine burns under quasi-covert attacks from Russia, with the Kremlin now demanding that Kyiv cease its efforts to reestablish sovereignty in its own country – that constitutes “aggression” according to Moscow, and represents a danger to world peace itself – Putin and friends continue to howl gigantic curses at anything that smacks of dissent from the Kremlin-mandated version of events. It’s hard not to notice an obsession with World War II emanating from Russia in this, and Moscow-approved outlets, including those who just got a whole raft of medals from the Kremlin for their “objective coverage” of Russia’s recent annexation of Crimea, love to mention that war and Ukraine. All the time. Not a day goes by without Russian media complaining about Ukrainians daring to dissent from the narrative that Stalin’s armies “liberated” Western Ukraine in 1944.
This
focus obsession with events of seventy years ago strikes most Westerners as, well, a bit odd. We, too, have our WWII myths – we like ours starring Tom Hanks when possible – but in Russia there remains the legacy of Communism, which used that potent myth – they called it the Great Patriotic War – to validate pretty much everything about the Soviet Union. Many have noticed that the orange-black ribbon worn prominently by pro-Moscow fighters in Ukraine today is that of the Order of St. George, a top Tsarist medal for bravery that was resurrected by Putin in 2000. But, not coincidentally, it’s also the ribbon of the medal commemorating Soviet victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War, which was issued to tens of millions of Soviet citizens. You can’t swing a cat in Russia even now without encountering an elderly veteran wearing one; this medal’s easy to spot since it’s got Stalin’s image on it. Such things matter in collective memory.
'As Ukraine burns under quasi-covert attacks from
Russia...'
If author has any proves, he'd better go to Vitaly
Churkin (Russian representative in ONU), for he stated not a single prove has
been presented to him on issue.
'with the Kremlin now demanding that Kyiv cease its
efforts to reestablish sovereignty in its own country'
Author has a very short memory: Kyiv has a coup
government whom nobody elected. It has 0 legitimacy, as impeachment of elected
president has never taken place. The cope broke the social contract between
different regions of Ukraine, as parties who came into power didn’t
receive more then 10% of the votes in their best times. When the social contract is
broken you need to establish new one, but Kyiv doesn´t even think of it, it just
want to dictate the will of small Galician region to the rest Ukrainian regions.
‘resent annexation of Crimea”
You may held the
referendum, 97% of the voters (from appr. 87% of population, who came to ballot
boxes) may wanted to reunite with Russia, but if it’s not to US advantage all “independent
media” will be croaking ‘annexation”. Nobody pays attention that Crimea wanted to be Russia
without a single shot; Southwestern regions of Ukraine don’t want to be Ukraine
with all punitive operations held by so called Ukrainian army.
‘Not a
day goes by without Russian media complaining about Ukrainians daring to
dissent from the narrative that Stalin’s armies “liberated” Western Ukraine in
1944.’
First, the right name
for Stalin’s armies is Soviet army, I never heard, US army named Obama’s
armies, but thank you for the idea. Being serious, if one labels something as
a “history”, he should avoid such propaganda tricks.
Although I have never
heard such complaining from Russian media, what is wrong with it? Soviet army
in cooperation with US and English armies did liberated whole Europe including Western Ukraine. If Western Ukraine residents have forgotten about Lvov or Volyn massacre and want to re-write the history, Bandera followers will soon refresh their collective memory. Anyhow is western want to do such things as rewriting the history, they are free to do it within it's small region.
‘This focus obsession with events of seventy years ago
strikes most Westerners as, well, a bit odd.’
If most Westerns would
have lost their dads/granddads/great granddads as Russians did, it hadn’t
stroked them at all.
‘but in Russia there
remains the legacy of Communism, which used that potent myth – they called it
the Great Patriotic War – to validate pretty much everything about the Soviet
Union.’
What you call a myth is a documented
history of every Russian family, and you may want it or not but the Great
Patriotic War do validate the Soviet Union.
‘Many have noticed
that the orange-black ribbon worn prominently by pro-Moscow fighters in Ukraine
today is that of the Order of St. George, a top Tsarist medal for bravery that was resurrected by
Putin in 2000. But, not coincidentally, it’s also the ribbon of the medal commemorating Soviet
victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War, which was issued to tens of millions of Soviet citizens.
More correct name for
pro-Moscow fighters in Ukraine: anti-Kiev or anti-coup self-defence forces.
As to
Sr.George's ribbon, it refers in the first place to the Order of Glory, Soviet analogue of St.George Order, what´s wrong with it? You don't like stars? St.George's ribbon connects generations of Russian people. Nowadays, after neonazi
government coming into power in Kiev, St.George ribbon starts to get the second meaning: the
person wearing it wants to say, “I am antifascist”.
You can’t swing a cat
in Russia even now without encountering an elderly veteran wearing one; this
medal’s easy to spot since it’s got Stalin’s image on it. Such things matter in
collective memory.’
Nice way to talk about old people, isn't' it? This phrase is both disrespectful
to “elderly veterans” and double false: Russian veterans usually wear their orders and
medals around Victory day (May 9th) and there are several orders decorated with St.George ribbon, not only one medal.
So you logical chain from Putin to Stalin through the St.George Ribbon holds no water.
My conclusion it´s pure
anti-Russian propaganda.
