I am sorry, dear reader, as I must break my promise to you. Last time I assured you I’ll have an article about food and the happiness it brings, about fun traditions and celebrations, about nice and wonderful things. Yet I must disappoint us both and write a different kind of article, one about what happened and keeps happening in Ukraine and the dystopia that is today’s Russia.
Let’s rewind to the end of August. The 6th month of war has begun, but the public became tired of it, so the news began to cover the war less and less. It was not a stalemate just yet, but with neither side making much progress, it was not far from it.
This all changed with a swift and efficient counteroffensive launched by Ukrainian forces on the 29th of August. Now, about 8000 square kilometres of occupied land have been liberated, mostly in the Kharkiv region, but with notable advancements in the Kherson region. The Russian troops who previously were occupying these positions were forced to retreat, many giving themselves up in captivity.
All the while, the Russian army is losing its position in the Kharkiv region, including in cities like Izyum used as transportation node by them. This is an important strategical advantage, so it became a battleground seeing some of the worst atrocities of war yet. After the liberation of this city on 10th of September, several press teams have been able to visit it and harrowing photographs have been released. Destroyed homes, shelled schools and hospitals – sadly, this became a common sight during this war.
What would a power-hungry autocrat do when he feels humiliated and defeated? Well, if you answered “threaten the world multiple times with nuclear weapons, stage three referendums in the Russia controlled Ukrainian territory and order a ‘partial’ mobilisation” you are correct. Now, this was a lot for one sentence, so let’s take it one heavy topic at a time.
First, the nuclear threat. “Smart choice” said no one ever. There are circumstances where using this kind of weapon of mass destruction is appropriate and right, especially during a completely unprovoked war over its sovereign territory. Now, even without the horribly flawed ethics of using nuclear weapons, if we take one look at a map, we see something important. Ukraine is next to Russia, meaning that the radiation released would reach… Russia. That may be a small problem, if you ask me.
Part two of the ‘brilliant’ (read sarcastically) plan are the referendums for regions to become a part of Russia. Voting in Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk and Luhansk regions commenced earlier this week, and the process by which is happens would be laughable if the circumstances were not so dire. Putin is no stranger to rigged voting, so if you want to know the results already, they have already been leaked and are available in a simple Google search. When you imagine casting a vote, what do you see? I hope you think of a simple and discrete affair, with a piece of paper, pen, and privacy. Well, this is not what has been happening – surprise, surprise. The scene of casting a ‘vote’ is more like an armed soldier knocking at your door, along with a person with a clear box for ballots, asking you to tell them your vote. Would you say ‘no’ to them? I know that I would be too scared to.
Part three: Mobilisation. On the 23rd, Putin ordered a ‘partial’ mobilisation. This led to a mass emigration out of Russia. You would think many people have already left the country in March when the war just begun, and you would be right, however, it’s a rather large place, so a lot more people stayed. Now, there are no international airplane tickets available for the next week, and even if you are lucky enough to find a ticket, it will cost you seven times what it used to. People, especially men, are fleeing the country as the mobilisation became a breaking point for millions of Russian citizens. Fighting in a senseless war, for the objectively wrong side – not something a sensible person would choose to do.
So, what does mobilisation mean for the war? Some say it’s a desperate move by Putin because he knows he is losing. This makes sense, because he is, but a threatened animal is the most dangerous – not something you want, when said animal has the power to cause nuclear holocaust. People also say that training or retraining these ‘soldiers’ would not only be difficult, but time consuming – a resource Putin does not have. This means that they will be sent to the front lines unprepared and undertrained, and, doubled with low morale, anyone can guess how this will go. The icing on the cake is that the ‘second most powerful army in the world’ is not only sending untrained people to Ukraine, but prisoners as well – which is a whole new ethical issue.
I do not wish to end this on this sad and depressing note, because however dark and disturbing the news get, there is still some good left in the world. If we are focused on this war, Ukraine has had a series of successful counteroffensive strikes, and continues to do so. The morale among the Ukrainians is high and the belief in victory is strong. So, find your reason to smile today, farewell and until the next one.
P.S. I really do hope that the next article will be about food, celebrations, and traditions – the best way to understand a country if you ask me.
