This is part 1 of an ongoing mini-series that explores the motives and reality behind the Russian invasion of Ukraine. In their attempts to explain to the rest of the world the reasoning behind Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Putin and friends have promoted a document called 'The Truth Behind Events in Ukraine & Donbass [2014-2022]'. Does Putin have a point? Is he saving the world from Nazis? Or is he manipulating our fears and playing evil power games with the world?
The document 23 pages long and contains both Russian and English language versions of each page (resulting in a 46 page pdf). Many claims are made in order to attempt to put the current conflict into a historical context that makes Putin's logic seem reasonable and justified. Finding unquestionable evidence to prove or disprove some of the claims is a difficult task, especially for non Russian speakers - but maybe we can learn something from a close examination anyway.
While Putin does appear to be dangerously unhinged to many people outside of Russia, it is also clear that there really is an active Nazi presence in Ukraine and that there have been many incidents between 2014 and today where pro Russian populations have been attacked by Ukrainian forces. How do we determine who is the 'good guy' and who is the 'bad guy'? Do we work out who was violent first and then say that they are the ultimate 'bad guys'? Or is the situation more complicated? Maybe one side has continually tried to create peace and the other side has continually been violent.. There are many questions to be answered!
Note: I think that 'Nazism' has strong roots that are well hidden in many nations today, so I don't take any of Putin's claims lightly. At the same time, I also think that Putin is just as likely as any Nazi group is to mislead the world and commit crimes to cement his power. In this article I am aiming to be objective and only to look at the evidence, without adding much opinion. I started writing this article with an open mind, without having any certainty whether either side is more truthful or honorable.
Claim #1: US & 'Western' Forces Provoked a coup in Ukraine in 2014
Eight years ago we all witnessed the tragic events in the centre of Kiev.
They reached a peak with the bloody coup that shook the entire country, led to Crimea’s secession from Ukraine, and the still ongoing armed conflict in Donbass. Ukraine was hit by a large-scale crisis. Mainly, it was provoked and actively supported by Western countries, primarily the United States.
This is a reference to the 'Maidan Revolution' in 2014 which has been spun in differing ways by each of the main groups involved. In general, supporters of the revolution saw President Yanukovych as a Russian puppet or at least someone who was pro-Russian enough to prevent Ukraine joining the EU. His government was known to be somewhat similar to Putin's regime in Russia, arresting and abusing protesters who disagreed with the leadership's decisions and generally seeking to maintain an oligarchic stranglehold over the population.
Meanwhile, Putin has taken the position that the 'revolution' in Ukraine was actually an illegal 'coup', ignoring that the majority of the country appeared to want to replace the leadership.
It is clear that Ukraine is a divided region, with data to show that perhaps around 2/3 of the population are leaning more towards the EU and the remaining 1/3 (mainly on the Eastern side of Ukraine), historically lean more towards Russia. No doubt the recent bloodshed will have caused some previously pro-Russian people to rethink their positions, but the data from the region backs up this rough level of national division. The hardcore Russian perspective may disagree and say that more Ukrainians actually support Russia.
As much as anything, the events of 2014 and the resulting split in perception between pro and anti-Russian thinkers points us towards the underlying failure at the heart of Democracy itself. Democracy fundamentally forces minorities in a nation to be under the thumb of other groups and this is entirely by design. The idea that Democracy is some kind of ultimate way for people to organize themselves is not really demonstrated by historic record and, in fact, many of the world's worst crimes were 'legal' and sanctioned by a Democracy of the day.
Arguing over who is the 'real' leader of a nation is no more rational than arguing who is the real Monarch. There is no natural monarch or national leader, no-one is born with such a distinction in their genetics because we are, as humans with our own individual destinies, meant to be living in a balanced way, not forced into the imbalance caused by having to follow the orders of someone else.
So already, just in the first claim of the document, we have hit an interesting point. While we could go into massive detail around the political history of Ukraine, the fact is that logic dictates that neither side is 100% right when they claim to support the 'rightful' rulers, since there isn't really a way to prove that ruling a nation is ever 'right'! Even if there were a way to magically prove the outcome of an election or measure 'the will of the people', as long as people are strongly divided they will never accept the rule of their opponents and attempting to force this onto people is problematic.
The document contains zero evidence to backup the claim that the 2014 revolution in Ukraine was 'provoked and actively supported by Western countries'. The Oliver Stone documentary 'Ukraine on Fire' does provide some insights into the US involvement with the events via 'neo-cons' who are known to be regularly involved in instigating violence around the world, but the evidence seems inconclusive.
Moving on.
Claim #2: Following the 2014 'revolution', Ukraine became a living nightmare, dominated by 'ultra nationalism' (Neo-Nazism).
Everything that happened in Ukraine later can only be described as endless political chaos, lawlessness and rampant ultra-nationalism. Active attempts to distort the truth and conceal the facts behind groundless accusations were made at the same time.
It is clear that there absolutely has been a significant presence of armed Neo Nazis groups in Ukraine for a long time.
However, it is a definite spin on the truth of the situation to say that 'everything that happened in Ukraine after 2014 is Nazism'. Even in Nazi Germany there was always resistance to Nazism and so even during Hitler's time, there was never a totality of Nazism in Germany. Additionally, Ukraine does not appear (from the outside) to be totally dominated by Nazism.
Setting aside the obvious exaggeration regarding the reach of Nazism in Ukraine, it is fair to say that Nazism has a presence in Ukraine that is uncommon in the rest of the world. This should genuinely alarm everyone else, given the history of Nazi ideologies and the massive level of error that has to exist in the mind of Nazis for them to be able to sustain their intentions.
So we really need to know how much of a threat Nazi ideology has posed to Ukraine and how much of a knock on effect this has had on Russia in order to assess Putin's claims on this topic.
Claim #3: Ukraine Is Responsible for Genocide and Nazi Abuses Of Populations
Common for modern Ukraine are:
Human rights violations
Genocide in Donbass
Glorification of Nazism
Neonazism and radicalism
Crackdown on freedom of thought, belief and religion
Ethnic and linguistic discrimination
Persecution of independent media & journalists
Falsifying history
Putin makes Ukraine sound every bit as bad as Nazi Germany here - leading us to expect that perhaps Ukraine was only moments away from building concentration camps to round up any non Nazis.
We'll get further into these claims as we go. For now, I just want to highlight that several of these can easily be said to be present in Putin's Russia too - made obvious by the rapid arrest of thousands of anti war protesters following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The document specifically highlights a book called Ukrainian War Crimes & Human Rights Violations (2017-2020) which is freely available to read. The book is 425 pages long. In fact, some of the text from Putin's document is lifted directly from this book.
The author of the book is Maxim Grigoriev, who can be seen speaking here at an event a couple of years ago about Syria:
I haven't been able to locate much information about his background but he is said to be head of a Russian 'Non Governmental Organization' called 'The foundation for the study of Democracy'.
The book's very first pages make clear the claims that Ukraine's current government operates through terror and violent abuses against it's own population, akin to any other highly repressive regime the world has seen. Claims include: censorship, beatings, torture, 'death squads' and all manner of evils designed to control the population and prevent Russian speaking and pro Russian groups from establishing their own space and destiny in the region.
Direct parallels are drawn between modern Ukraine and Nazi Germany, with the author and testimonies in the book comparing German Nazi SS groups to the modern Ukrainian 'Right Sector' and 'Azov Battalion'. As outsiders, it is not possible to easily know the truth of these subjects and it is important to remember that Adolf Hitler was on the front cover of TIME Magazine as a 'man of the year' before World War 2 was launched. It is absolutely possible for large groups of people to 'overlook' Nazi presence, we know this for 100% certain. The question here is whether the West is 'overlooking' the Nazism in Ukraine, as Putin claims - or whether Putin is exaggerating the Nazi problem in Ukraine for his own advantage.
After listing numerous political murders alleged to have been committed by Neo Nazi groups in Ukraine, the book highlights a 2019 letter by 40 US members of congress, urging that the 'Azov Battalion' be classified as a terrorist group.
The level of detail describing longstanding and excruciating torture by Neo Nazis in Ukraine is disturbing to read and seems convincing to an outsider. I am not currently able to confirm or reject the claims being made, they may have been spun or may not. However, I have heard some of the stories being told from other sources and the details match with the contents of this book. Through this material, it is easy to see how the Russian population would be motivated to support Russian military action to prevent such abuses taking place so close to home.
The almost endless series of accounts of horrific torture by Ukrainian groups is certainly far more convincing that the vial of 'something' held up by US General Colin Powell, used to justify invasion by the US in years previous. Many pieces of evidence are provided that assert that modern Ukraine is heavily supportive of Nazi ideology - with streets being named after key Nazis from World War 2 and numerous National holidays having been authorized in honor of historic Nazis.
The book goes on to provide evidence of Ukrainian shelling of the Donbass region, which led to the deaths of many civilians of all ages.
Some of the claims can be proven through public records and photographs from a variety of online sources - but others might only be able to be proven through in depth criminal investigation, similar to the war crimes tribunals of Nuremberg following World War 2.
Returning to the document published by Putin's government:
According to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights report over 14'000 people were killed during the conflict in Donbass. Many fell victim to the criminal shelling of residential areas by the Ukrainian military and neo-Nazi units. Among the victims are at least 152 children.
It is not clear which document this claim is pointing to, however, this document by the United nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, written in May 2016 describes mass causalities and human rights abuses, including indiscriminate shelling of civilian areas as being caused by both the Russian federation forces and also the Ukrainian Government forces. So once again, it seems that Putin's finger pointing has four of his fingers pointing back at himself.
In such situations people understandably highly emotionally charged and can easily find their minds jumping to biased conclusions. It is also conceivable that Putin, being power hungry, has sought to deliberately stir up tensions with Ukraine in order to then blame them as the sole cause of the problem (exactly as his document continually does, without taking any responsibility for causing violence).
Claim #4: Ukraine glorifies Nazism at an official level
Numerous photos are provided showing street names in Ukraine named after famous Nazis of the region and and also 'torch marches' of Neo Nazis in Ukraine, mimicking the giant torch marches that occurred in Nazi Germany in World War 2.
While it is likely that some of the people marching do legitimately admire Nazi ideology, it also seems to be true that the nationalist movement in Ukraine is, for some people, a statement of defiance against Russia, rather than a generally racist or xenophobic belief in their own superiority (as was the case with Hitler's 'Ayryan' mythology and ideas of a German 'superman').
Given the clash of cultures in Ukraine, it is likely that these groups of nationalists are more about resisting Russia's influences than much else - which is probably why Putin keeps focusing on describing the Ukrainians as 'Russiaphobic', instead of saying that they want to create some kind of white Ukrainian world empire.
*THE UKRAINIAN INSURGENT ARMY (UPA) WAS AN ANTI-SOVIET ARMED FORCE THAT WAS ACTIVE DURING THE GREAT PATRIOTIC WAR MOSTLY IN WESTERN UKRAINE. GERMANY PROMISED THE UPA THAT THEY COULD ESTABLISH THEIR OWN UKRAINIAN STATE SHOULD THE NAZIS BE VICTORIOUS.
It is telling that Putin tries to make out that a group is 'bad' because they are 'anti soviet' (in addition to the group perhaps working with Nazi Germany to some extent). Putin has often been accused of aspiring to some of the images of Soviet Russia that he was born into and from which his Father and Grandfather gained their status in society. As an outside, I imagine that being sandwiched between Nazi Germany and Soviet Russia would not be easy and many would feel pressured to pick a side, when they might not really want to pick either.
One example of the official support for Nazi figures by the Ukrainian government is provided in the Ukrainian war crimes book - a road sign showing that a street is named after Volodymyr Kubijovyč, a Ukrainian nationalist from the World War 2 era who collaborated with the German Nazis and created a Ukrainian division of the Nazi SS.
Given the German Nazis fought and killed a huge number of Soviet Russians during World War 2, it is understandable that there would be tension in such a situation today. However, since the politics and alleged ideologies and mythologies in Russia and among Nazis have changed quite significantly since the 1940s, it seems at least partially true that what is driving the split is as much a somewhat irrational fear of history repeating as anything else.
Sometimes fears can become self fulfilling prophecies, as we try to control other people in order to stop them doing what we are convinced they will do, but that in fact, they did not intend to do.
Claim #5: Ukraine is being weaponized by NATO states
Starting from the beginning of the year to the end of the second decade of February, nearly fifty military transport aircraft from various countries – USA, Great Britain, Canada, Poland, and Lithuania – landed in Ukraine
This line appears to have an error in it, since it says 'the second decade of February'. Running the Russian through online translation systems also results in the word 'decade' being present. However, it is safe to assume that the text is referring to the period of the first two months of 2022.
Clearly, much of the weaponry that was sent to Ukraine by the US and other states was done under the assertion that it would be used to defend Ukraine against an attack on it's sovereignty. Putin's document attempts to demonstrate that this is really some kind of a plot to support Nazism and to threaten Russia. However, it is clearly easy for these states to point out that they were simply helping Ukraine to defend itself against an apparently aggressive Russia - which turned out to be an accurate assessment of Russia in February 2022.
Near the end of the document, images are provided that reinforce the Nazi nature of the Azov Battalion in Ukraine, plus US support for them.
Ultimately, this all raises questions as to just how much Nazism has penetrated US governmental systems, as much as anything else. It is well understood that at the end of World War 2, Operation Paperclip saw the importing of many Nazi war criminal scientists into the US in order to try to benefit from their knowledge. Some of them went on to be instrumental in founding NASA and other US establishments that still exist today at the core of the US establishment. Given that US Wall St. bankers funded Hitler's rise to power in Germany and that the eugenics movement that drove Nazi ideology was huge in pre WW2 America, there are legitimate concerns that need to be addressed.
The so called 'Aryan brotherhood' are well known to have a strong presence in the US, gaining particular attention as a gang with control of parts of the US prison system:
Conclusion of Part 1
This is a big topic and a lot of research needs to be done to understand the details. Most of the world has not understood the plotlines being highlighted by Putin and so were shocked when he announced his invasion of Ukraine. Even now, the evidence presented by Putin seems to be lacking some of the details needed to let it stand up to scrutiny. At the same time, there are many possible twists and turns when it comes to explaining the real motives involved and being able to point to groups of violent extremists as 'boogie men' opens the door to all kinds of atrocities and power grabs in the name of 'doing good deeds'.
Both the US and Russia are well known to have bloody hands when it comes to the abuses of civilians in numerous regions and it seems that elements of the Ukrainian population are no different. While most of the world urgently demands a return to peaceful communications and non violent processes, there are also those who demand violence for their own reasons. Often, their justifications don't quite add up - but they also do not really seem to be interested in hearing what truth has to say.
In the next part of this series, we will dig deeper into the issues to try to understand more clearly the true motives of each of the groups and what might be done to more quickly bring an end to the violence.
May all involved quickly find their way to peace!
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