Section: Russia’s Disintegration

 #RussiaDisintegration #РазвалРоссии

Materials prepared by Liza Tumanova.

“The Ukrainian army is made up of people who fight for their ideals and make their own decisions on the battlefield. Russia’s army consists of selfless and voiceless puppets in the hands of generals. Ukraine’s army consists of fighters and russia’s army consists of soldiers,” says Yulia Latynina.

Realities of war

Since the beginning of russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, russian personnel losses have totaled about 31,900.

In many rf regions, authorities purchase hundreds of graves for citizens whose funerals cannot be paid for by their families. There were no purchases of such scale in previous years, this indicating mass deaths of russians in the war in Ukraine.

The Ukrainian Armed Forces eliminated russian Major General Roman Kutuzov. The incident occurred near the village of Nikolaevka in Popasna district of the so-called LNR. The deaths of four generals has already been acknowledged, but there could be many more, since russia is basically hiding its real losses.

The war in Ukraine costs russia 20 billion rubles every day. This can be the yearly budget of Yekaterinburg or Novosibirsk.

There was an exchange of bodies of killed servicemen between the russian federation and Ukraine at the contact line in Zaporizhzhia oblast – 160 for 160.

The Russian Defense Ministry included the crew of the sunken cruiser “Moskva” in the list of “participants of the special military operation”. But not the ship itself.

About 500 National Guard fighters from Kabardino-Balkaria returned to russia from Ukraine after coming under fire there. Those wishing to leave were warned that if they returned to russia, “they would be considered war criminals”.

The military prosecutor of the Western District, Artur Yegiyev, reported that about 600 conscript soldiers took part in the special operation in Ukraine.

Military registration and enlistment offices all over russia are summoning people who are in the reserve “to clarify their data”. This is an additional way of recruiting for the war and reconciling lists in case of general mobilization.

In Vladivostok, an unknown man threw a burning rag to the door of the Leninsky and Frunzensky District military registration and enlistment offices. This is the 18th military registration and enlistment office that has been set on fire in Russia.

Websites of the “Network of City Portals” removed pages with official lists of people killed during the “special operation” in Ukraine. At the suit of the military prosecutor’s office, the russian court recognized such information “prohibited” on one of the network’s portals.

“If we’re talking about russian military units firing at the Ukrainian side, those are the targets. It doesn’t matter where they are located – in Ukraine or in Russia,” explained former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine William Taylor.

There will be no quick “Crimean-style” referendum in Kherson and Zaporizhzhia. It has been postponed until the autumn, because Moscow is not sure that it will be able to defend the seized territories without a compromise with Kyiv.

The court in the so-called DNR sentenced to death three foreign volunteers who fought on the side of Ukraine: Britons Aidan Aslin and Sean Pinner and Moroccan Saadoun Brahim. The public views these actions as pressure on the British and Moroccan authorities.

Debris of the economy

According to the Public Opinion Foundation, 37% of russians have felt a significant deterioration in their financial situation over the past 2-3 months. The number of such people is 9% more than in mid-February, when the foundation conducted the previous survey.

The U.S. refuses to lift sanctions against russia in exchange for grain exports from Ukraine, calling such statements by the russian authorities “extortion diplomacy”.

Marine imports to russia have decreased by 60% since the end of February. Major transport companies CMA-CGM, Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd have suspended their operations due to russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

In April-May, production and supply of Siberian coal  decreased. In April, Kuzbass reduced exports by 20% because of problems with logistics, including due to sanctions, and the refusal of fuel from individual countries.

Dow Jones deprived Russian banks of access to the database of sanctions lists, criminal cases and other restrictions. Without this information, banks will not be able to properly monitor customer transactions and assess sanctions risks.

Raiffeisenbank introduces a negative interest for deposits in foreign currency. From June 30, the bank will take a fee for keeping currency in accounts.

Russian lead-producing plants are on the verge of closing due to a complete halt in exports. Russia annually produces about 200 K tonnes of lead, about half of which has always been exported.

Russian authorities decided to extend restrictions until June 12 in the airports of Anapa, Bryansk, Belgorod, Voronezh, Krasnodar, Kursk, Gelendzhik, Lipetsk, Rostov-on-Don, Elista and Simferopol.

Canada has banned exports  of 28 services “vital” to the oil, gas and chemical industries to russia.

The Federal Antimonopoly Service proposed to raise regulated gas prices of Gazprom in russia from July 1. Now the cost  will increase by 5% for industry, and for the population – by 3%.

The EU has begun working on the 7th package of anti-russian sanctions. New restrictions may affect gas supplies from russia and expand the list of banks that will be cut off from SWIFT. Gazprombank, through which the russian gas payment scheme is arranged, is on the list.

International isolation

Sergey Lavrov, russian foreign minister, had to cancel the visit to Serbia because Bulgaria, North Macedonia and Montenegro had closed their airspace for him.

Dmitriy Medvedev’s son had his US visa revoked. Ilya Medvedev must leave the USA within two days.

After threats posed by russia, authorities of Finland are considering erecting a fence on the border with russia to enhance the country’s security.

“If russia withdraws recognition of Lithuania’s independence of 1991, Lithuania will cancel the Polyanovsk Peace Treaty of 1634 and require that putin submit to the rule of Vladislav IV and give back all occupied territories to the Grand Duchy. Smolensk is Lithuania!” This was the response of Lithuania to russia’s intention to cancel recognition of Lithuania’s independence.

“Your request for electronic authorization cannot be processed”. When trying to issue an online permission to enter Mexico, russian citizens receive a refusal in the Ukrainian language.

Montenegro, following Latvia and Lithuania, has switched off russian TV channels because of the threat to national security. Meanwhile, Azerbaijan has officially denied access to the site RIA “Novosti” that is considered one of the Kremlin’s propaganda media.

The authorities of Latvia have approved transition of the whole country’s educational system to the Latvian language beginning from 2023. The only official language in the country is Latvian, and Russian has the status of a foreign language.

Laura Fernandez, the ex-first soloist of the Stanislavsky Theatre and a ballet dancer of the Mariinsky Theatre, has left russia. She doesn’t believe the Kremlin propaganda and doesn’t support the russian invasion of Ukraine.

Regions

The  All-Russian movement of the “Freedom of Russia” Legion continues its educational work. The organizers emphasize that under putin’s regime, the peoples of Russia actually live in prison, without the right to a voice and national identity, to traditions and culture of their ancestors. The organization distributes Legion symbols throughout the russian federation and calls for establishing a Free Russia.

At last count, the total number of Mari people living in the Republic of Mari El, is only about 550 K people. Mari organizations are suppressed, publications are banned, and thousands of Maris are imprisoned, deported, or missing. The economic situation of the Republic is artificially worsened to divert people’s attention from their culture to the banal desire to survive under difficult economic conditions.

Moscow ordered to liquidate the All-Tatar Public Center fighting for the Tatars’ rights and their cultural heritage. The putin regime’s repression of those who disagree with forced russification is only gaining momentum and will become extensive in the future.

“At present, due to well-known international events, the Russian language, as well as our entire multinational Russian culture, needs to be protected and actively promoted at all levels,” Tatarstan President Rustam Minnikhanov stood up for Russian culture and the Russian language. It is interesting that in the Tatar news on TNV and GTRK the words or interviews of Russian-speaking ordinary citizens and officials are translated into Tatar, but the words of Minnikhanov, Mukhametshin and the highest Russian officials are not.

Meanwhile, native language and literature classes in Dagestan have been reduced to one hour per week: half an hour for native language and half an hour for native literature.The largest Telegram channel dedicated to the rights of prisoners in Irkutsk oblast Anti Pytki 38 was blocked. Now the former channel has about 30,000 subscribers. The author regularly talked about people who may have been involved in violence in colonies and pre-trial detention facilities.

Purchases of mourning supplies from the budgets of the Siberian authorities have increased 17-fold since February 24. Most of all on wreaths and coffins was spent by the authorities in Buryatia. Budget expenditures were significant in the Altai Territory and the Irkutsk oblast.

Large families in the Zabaikalsky microdistrict in Ulan-Ude, who received land for individual construction, have not been able to get access to water supply and roads promised by the authorities since 2013.

Information has surfaced that Minister of Industry of the Republic of Tatarstan Korobchenko is a member of the Athos Brotherhood. The one where one of the main figures is General Reshetnikov of the SVR, whose main brainchild is the hawkish “think tank” RISI, which was the main Ukrainian-phobic expert center and has long declared the need to seize the territory of Ukraine. Ombudsman Iryna Volynets, who herself advocated for abolition of the Tatar language in schools, is from the same group.

Fires continue in Russia: a building with plastic products in Khimki, retail rows in Kotelniki, a fire at the optical-mechanical plant near Moscow, where military optics for the Russian army are produced – from binoculars to scopes, a motor pool with military equipment in Tiumen, a Rosgvardiya building in Komsomolsk-on-Amur, a massive fire at the Ust-Luga forest terminal “Factor”. It is just this week.

Madness of the “russian world”

The French publication Paris Match conducted an investigation which revealed that in all foreign trips Vladimir Putin is accompanied by a special officer of the Federal Guard Service, who is responsible for collecting the excrement and urine of the head of state. Journalists believe that the purpose of the FGS is to prevent foreign medics from analyzing the President’s excrement, which would lead to leaks of information about his state of health.

Dmitry medvedev, deputy chairman of the Security Council of the russian federation, explained why he recently began to speak out harshly in Telegram. “The answer is I hate them. They are bastards and scum. They want us, Russia, to die. And as long as I am alive, I will do everything to make them disappear,” writes Deputy Chairman of the Security Council dmitry medvedev. Who exactly he considers to be bastards and scum, the former president of the russian federation did not specify.

On Wednesday, the State Duma passed in its final reading a law giving the president the right to impose large-scale restrictions on operation of russia’s financial and banking systems.

A bill on fines for LGBT propaganda of up to 500 K rubles for citizens and up to 10 M rubles for legal entities was introduced in the State Duma.

The russian authorities want to employ three dozen graduates of Stavropol Medical University in the LNR. It follows from the order that after an explanatory seminar on “cooperation and assistance to friendly republics” a tenth of the graduates of the medical faculty are going to be sent to the war zone. The young medics are shocked: they are not ready to go to war.

In Donetsk oblast, the sixteenth-century All Saints’ Monastery of the Moscow Patriarchate burned down. The fire resulted from bombing by the russian military. 

The Federal Security Service revives the idea of a single database of cell phone identifiers. Experts believe that this is just an excuse to spy on russian citizens, which will allow them to monitor their correspondence and phone calls.

Russia has approved the Fund to support military-patriotic cinema. First of all, obviously, they will make films about the battle for Donbas. The plots of the films should maintain the morale of the mobilized and motivate them to “defend their homeland” in foreign territory.  

The russian federation planned to seize Kyiv in three days, create a new administration, and organize a referendum to declare a republic. But most importantly, local residents were going to be given Soviet passports. After retreating from Kyiv, the russian military left hundreds of blank USSR passports.

A Duma committee approved a bill imposing seven years in prison for public calls against the rf security, and up to 20 years for involvement in military actions against the rf.

The State Duma passed in the first reading a bill that legally prescribes the possibility of importing goods into Russia without the consent of holders’ rights. It concern original products put into circulation abroad. The norm applies only in 2022.

Businessman from Kaliningrad Artur Rusyaev died in prison. He built a mosque, demolished by the local authorities, and later Rusyaev was sentenced to prison on trumped-up charges.

Property of those accused of “spreading fakes” in russia began to be seized, including bank accounts, vehicles and apartments.

Almost 2,400 cases were opened by law enforcers under administrative article 20.3.3 on “discrediting” the russian army. The article was introduced only in March, but its application has already become an all-russian practice. 

Russian officials have spent over 1 billion rubles for the purchase of VPN-services to bypass mass blocking of their own. The state-owned Rostelecom sells these technologies to them and makes more money on circumventing military censorship than all private companies.

In Turkey, Lavrov sniped at a journalist who asked what russia had stolen from Ukraine besides grain. For example, the value of equipment stolen by the russians from the Chernobyl plant exceeded $135 million. Even Chernobyl protection systems were stolen.

The russian authorities demanded that the Chief Rabbi of Moscow, Pinchas Goldschmidt, publicly support the special operation in Ukraine. However, he did not give in to the russian authorities and left for Hungary to help Ukrainian refugees.