American and Russian Propaganda War over Ukraine (2)

The USA warns the whole world about a possible Russian invasion every day and tries to increase global awareness. Meanwhile, Ukraine, with limited support from the Western world, is in a hurry to prepare its military forces against Moscow, which occupied Crimea before. Despite the American claims, the Russians claim that they have no offensive intentions, but at least for the Ukrainians and the Western world, the Russian statements are not very convincing. On the other hand, despite the already rising China, the Russian Army is defined as the second largest army in the world after the American Army. Ukraine is in the 22nd place. Standing out as the country with the largest number of nuclear warheads in the world, the Russian Federation does not hesitate to show with its soldiers that it has enough military power to invade Ukraine, which has the largest territory after Russia, on the European continent, if necessary. Except for the Donbas region, it seems possible that the Russian forces, which will begin to advance westward to occupy Ukraine at least in the east of the Dnieper river, will open a front from Belarus as well. Against more than 1,500 modern warplanes, what the Ukrainians can do with a small number of warplanes, not even 100 in total, seems very limited. If Russia, which is expected to establish air superiority in a short time, puts 50% of its 12,000 tanks into the plains of Ukraine, Ukraine may have a hard time stopping this force with its 2,500 tanks. It may be possible to stop Russian tanks over a wide period of time with anti-tank guns from attack helicopters, Su-25 or A-10-like aircraft and UAVs, but in an operation area where air superiority is almost impossible to achieve, the Ukrainians can do to defend their country beyond guerrilla warfare. seems limited. Russia's dominance in the Black Sea makes Ukraine vulnerable to attacks and possible landing operations from the south.

The superiority of the Russians in the light of numerical values, in the hands of good commanders, offers the Russian army the opportunity to capture Ukraine in a short time with a lightning operation. The only hope that can reverse this pessimistic scenario is the possible deterrence of American sanctions. Sanctions that will be imposed only by the USA without the support of Western Europe may not be very meaningful. The 'cracked voices' that are now coming out of Germany and blocking even France at the EU level point to the soft bellies of NATO and EU institutions in the face of Russian aggression.

In his last statement to the press after the Putin-Johnson meeting, Putin said; The US has ignored our demands and defends the view that it is trying to drag us into the war. Rarely referring to tensions in Eastern Europe, Putin said that the United States and its allies ignored his country's security demands, which he set as a condition of calm. He says the US is trying to drag Russia into the war so that it can impose sanctions. British Prime Minister Johnson, on the other hand, commented that "Putin held a gun to Kiev's head" and stated that his meeting with Putin was unproductive.

This series of talks continues. All the effort is to prevent a Russian attack, not to let the war break out. Or that's just how it looks. As a result, although it is not clear whether the war will break out, propaganda wars continue uninterruptedly between the parties. In the first article, American and Russian allegations were included under four headings. Let's complete the remaining titles with this article.

American Claim - 5:

There are no credible reports of any ethnic Russian or Russian speakers being threatened by the Ukrainian government. However, there are credible reports that in Russian-occupied Crimea and the Donbas, Ukrainians face the suppression of their culture and national identity and live in an atmosphere of severe oppression and fear. Russia is forcing Ukrainian citizens living in Crimea to acquire Russian citizenship. It signs decisions restricting Ukrainians' access to their property and healthcare, and threatens to dismiss Ukrainians in Crimea. Crimean Ukrainians who peacefully oppose Russian occupation or influence are faced with unfounded imprisonment, home police raids, officially sanctioned discrimination and, in some cases, other abuses, such as torture. Religious and ethnic minorities are investigated and prosecuted as "extremists" or "terrorists" by the Russians.

Russia's Answer - 5:

Violations of millions of people against the Russian-speaking population reached terrible proportions in Ukraine. While removing the Russian language from all aspects of life, the Ukrainian Government enacts discriminatory laws regarding language, education and so-called "indigenous peoples". In August 2021, the President of Ukraine, Vladimir Zelensky, declared his denial against Russians living in his country. 

It displayed inexorable xenophobia and went so far as to ask Russians to leave Ukraine. In June 2021, State Commissioner for the Protection of Languages ​​in Ukraine, Taras Kremen, said that those who objected to the language law could "leave the country's territory".

One wonders why the US, which often claims to be so committed to the cause of human rights, refuses to see the outright discrimination faced by Russian-speaking Ukrainian citizens. Maybe they don't see Russians as people?

As for the human rights situation in Crimea, including the situation of ethnic minorities, after the return of the peninsula to Russia, conditions not only improved, but completely changed. Unlike the former and current Ukrainian government, the Russian Federation is trying to preserve the peninsula's unique multicultural nature. We believe that the West deliberately spread disinformation about the human rights issues in Crimea to make the international community forget about Ukraine's appalling human rights record.

American Claim - 6:

President Biden met with President Putin twice, and US officials held dozens of high-level meetings and phone calls with his Russian and European counterparts as part of a comprehensive diplomatic effort to resolve this situation peacefully.

Russia's Answer - 6:

The reference to the so-called "comprehensive diplomatic effort" is hypocritical and deceptive at best. Since December 15, 2021, when we formally sent to Washington our draft agreements on security guarantees and measures that ensure the security of Russia and NATO countries, proposed by Russia at different levels of experts and in various formats, on December 15, 2021, Americans have mostly made obvious attempts to prolong the discussion of certain parameters. The White House and its Western allies; instead of focusing on the core of the issues pointed out in the Russian documents we have presented, they have launched a very poisonous information and propaganda campaign that presents Russia as a "threat" to international stability, "aggressor", "enemy of civilized Europe" and "enemy of civilized Europe". All this continues to be done to intimidate the Russians, in addition to the "painful" sanctions designed to disrupt our economy and solidify the systematic challenge to Russia. Even the publication of such "recommendations" by the US State Department on the eve of the talks between the Secretary of State Sergey Lavrov and the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Geneva can only be interpreted as a clear provocation. Lavrov laid out Russia's approaches in detail at the press conference he held after the talks on security guarantees.

American Claim - 7:

NATO is a defense alliance whose purpose is to protect its members.

Russia's Answer - 7:

The NATO Alliance has discredited itself with acts contrary to international law. The operation against Yugoslavia by NATO members, the invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan, and the barbaric destruction of Libya by the allied coalition are realities. This aggressive policy has nothing to do with "defense".

The statements made by Russian President Vladimir Putin about NATO's defensive character in 2002 were essentially only valid for that period, aimed at increasing cooperation between Russia and NATO. Despite our efforts to cooperate with NATO, the Alliance's aggressive policy towards Russia and its eastward expansion have destroyed our well-meaning approaches.

American Claim - 8:

NATO has never promised to accept new members.

Russia's Answer - 8:

On February 9, 1990, US Secretary of State James Baker, in a meeting with Soviet Foreign Minister Eduard Shevardnadze, gave firm assurances that "NATO forces will not be extended an inch to the East." On February 10, 1990, German Foreign Minister Hans-Dietrich Genscher assured Eduard Shevardnadze that "NATO will not expand to the East". On the same day, German Chancellor Helmut Kohl confirmed this to Mikhail Gorbachev. In a briefing on February 13, 1990, US Secretary of State James Baker said that Washington favored a united Germany and its inclusion in NATO and was ready to ensure that the alliance's military presence did not move further eastward. All these assurances can be found in the minutes of the meetings that are open to the public today.

American Claim - 9:

NATO enlargement is not aimed at Russia.

Russia's Answer - 9:

Over the last 20 years, all NATO coalition forces have been concentrated precisely on the eastern flank. The Alliance continues to advance to the borders of Russia, to create and improve the military infrastructure accordingly, to develop the necessary supply chains, including the transfer of large military units from the USA to Europe, and to deploy US missile defense elements equipped with dual-role launchers in Romania. Plans to deploy missile systems in Poland are being worked on. Heavy military equipment hangars are being built in NATO member countries in Eastern Europe. These countries 

Opportunities are also provided for a foreign military presence that violates the spirit, if not the letter, of the 1997 Russia-NATO Founding Act.

The number of warships operated by extraterritorial forces entering the Black Sea has increased significantly and these calm waters have turned into another area of ​​instability. The previously calm and peaceful Baltic Sea has become a scene for military conflict. The intensity of the flights of reconnaissance planes of NATO countries began to threaten the civilian air traffic.

NATO regularly conducts military exercises near our borders. Only last year, the assumption is that Russia is the enemy. To date, approximately 120 exercises have been conducted in which attack scenarios have been tested against Russian soil.

NATO pursues an extremely aggressive partnership policy, spying on the territory of Finland, Sweden, Ukraine and Georgia, while simultaneously trying to gain a foothold in Central Asia.

Conclusion:

The facts "vary" depending on which side you're on. However, there is only one reality: the smell of war that has occupied the world for the last six months.