WAR IN UKRAINE: October 2, 2022
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS: Day 221
I was asked at the How the Light Gets in Festival if the Kremlin might use tactical nuclear weapons. Well the Chechen leader & hardline Moscow ally, Ramzan Kadyrov, reportedly says that Russia should consider using low-yield nuclear weapons in the face of its humiliating defeats in Ukraine.
Meanwhile more confirmation that Russia has withdrawn its troops from the Ukrainian town of Lyman, a key strategic hub - just a day after Mr Putin announced the illegal annexation of the region. As I said at the festival - talk about a split screen reality.
Zelensky:Ukrainian flag is in Lyman, our advances continue. "Ukraine will retrieve what it owns,” President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Oct. 1. "There is no trace of any pseudo-referendum there," the president said, adding that Russians will see a "more and more" different reality compared to what their officials say. Russia also confirmed defeat in Lyman. According to Russia's Defense Ministry, Russian troops pulled out of the strategic city, fearing encirclement - Kyiv Independent
In an unexpected development, Turkey has joined a growing international chorus in condemning Russia's attempt to illegally annexan additional four Ukrainian regions, reports RFE/RL. Over the past weeks, President Erdogan had seemed to be on a path of currying favour with his Russian counterpart in order to keep the flow of Russian tourists, energy and money coming into Turkey.
The Russian rapper Ivan Petunin has committed suicide. He recorded a message to his fans about mobilization.He said he refuses to murder another man. He said Putin has taken all Russian men captive, leaving them with 3 choices: becoming a murderer, going to prison or suicide - @Visegrad24
Required reading…
Referendum coverage proves media is still vulnerable to Russian disinformation
According to the Kremlin, millions of Ukrainian civilians who have been subjected to seven months of brutal Russian occupation just voted overwhelmingly to join their oppressors. This claim is self-evidently absurd and grotesque, but that did not prevent multiple international media outlets from reporting on Russia’s sham referendums in a matter-of-fact manner that risked lending a veneer of legitimacy to Vladimir Putin’s ongoing war of imperial aggression.
“Over 96% said to favour joining Russia in first vote results from occupied Ukraine regions,” declared Reuters in a tweet that uncritically cited Moscow’s highly improbable referendum results. Reuters also published an equally inaccurate news report titled, “Big majority said to favour joining Russia in first vote results of occupied Ukraine regions.” Meanwhile, the Financial Times led with the dangerously unhelpful headline, “Russian-held referendums in occupied Ukraine opt for annexation.”
Read more in this Atlanic Council analysis by Peter Dickinson here