Friday, 18 March 2022

Under the "Iron heel"- Letter from the Ukraine


Under the "Iron heel"




Ukraine, 2022. Thirty years since independence. Nothing has been left

over the years. No joy, no happiness, only hope that it does not get

worse. However, on New Year's Eve 2022, there was not even that feeling.

Only a dreary feeling of impending disaster.




I did not believe in bad things. It seemed like I was just tired. Corona

virus ,covid-19. Father's illness. Endless hospitals. Doctors, nurses,

nannies. Medical masks in the bag, in the glove compartment and in both

pockets. The zones are yellow, green, orange and red. Vaccinations,

first, second and talk about the third.




Two years of COVID pressure. Restrictions replaced by bans. You can't

walk around without a mask. You can't go outside. You can't walk in the

park. Not allowed in the car without a mask. Do not gather more than two

and do not come closer than one and a half meters. Then came the

vaccinations. And again you “re not allowed to”. It is impossible to

teach, to give medical treatment and generally to work to without

vaccination. You can’t shop without vaccination, can’t use transport,

cant’t go to the hospital, basically, just can’t live at all, too.

Public places were full of posters, announcements and warnings.

Television news informed, convinced and simply frightened.




And if in March 2020 covid-19 scared us, then after many have been ill,

the fear was over. We are accustomed to adapt, adapting to reality,

thinking only about one thing, when it's all going to be over.

Therefore, many did not believe the news announcements about the

imminent attack of Russia.




First time the impending attack was reported on the news in December. On

the announced date, the attack did not take place because "Russia got

scared." However, the topic of Russia's attack on Ukraine did not leave

the TV screens. Maps, plans and videos of the movement of Russian troops

were shown. The next date for the attack was 16 February. Days passed in

anticipation. Until President Zelensky delivered a speech declaring

February 16 as Unity Day, which was a festive one. Many were surprised,

some openly laughed.




However, on the morning of February 24, phone calls came and the word

“war” broke into our homes. I couldn't believe that Russia attacked

Ukraine. IT JUST COULD NOT BE. Just a few days ago, I calmed down my

aunt, who called me from Kyiv in hysterics after yet another news

release. I explained, reassured and encouraged. And it turned out that

all my explanations, all my faith that Russia would never attack

Ukraine, were shattered.




The first days passed in a state of prostration. What was going on

around seemed


something unreal. Martial law. General mobilization. Bombings of

Chernigov, Kharkov, Kyiv, Irpen. Curfew. Armed patrols on the streets of

the city. Air raid sirens. My aunt called from Kyiv,  she is day and

night in the basement. After two nights in a bomb shelter, for which an

underground parking was adapted, my sister spent the night in the

corridor on the floor.




On the fourth day I tried to watch the news, trying to understand what

was going on. Ukrainian and Russian news turned out to be diametrically

opposed. Public opinion was also polarized. Nationalist-minded citizens

sent curses and obscenities towards Russia and the Russians. The

pro-Russian citizens of Ukraine are divided. Part believed in

Russia-enemy, part - in Russia-liberator. I did not see myself with

either the first or the second group.




In an attempt to figure it out, I watched a video from the East of the

country, listened to interviews of experts and political scientists and

tried to understand what was happening and what to expect next. Military

operation for denazification and demilitarization of Ukraine. War of

Russia against Ukraine. Russia's war with the united West. Hypotheses

were explained, supported, predicted. I try to analyse each of the

hypotheses.




War of Russia against Ukraine. First of all, why? Why is Russia at war

with Ukraine? To seize the territory of Ukraine? But Russia is so big.

Why does it need the territory of Ukraine? After all, having taken over

Ukraine, you will have to take care of the population and  to assume

obligations for its external debt. For Russia, this is a large amount,

not to say unbearable. Again, having seized Ukraine by military means,

it means setting the civilian population against itself, and the

nationalist-minded part of it doubly so. Not to mention the global

community.




Military operation for denazification and demilitarization of Ukraine.

In 2014, I wanted to write that nationalists came to power. And then I

thought, why in 2014? Weren't Kravchuk, Kuchma, Yushchenko also

nationalists? They were. Was it not under Viktor Yanukovych that a

nationalist policy was carried out, did not anti-Russian propaganda pour

from TV screens and the media? It did. But even if we assume that it was

in 2014 that ardent nationalists came to power, then why did they decide

to carry out the denazification operation only 8 years later?! Why by

military means? Wasn't it more logical to prevent nationalists from

coming to power in 2014? After all, then there was every reason to

oppose this through the world community. The overthrow of Yanukovych (

who was the legitimate president) was illegal. The actions of the

protesters on the Maidan were violent. At the same time, the slogans

came which were nationalistic and called for reprisals against Russians,

Jews and communists. This was followed by reprisals against veterans,

communists and other thinkers. People were beaten, imprisoned, killed.

The editor of the newspaper Raboche-Krestyanskaya Pravda Anatoly

Mayevsky and journalist Ruslan Kotsaba were imprisoned. Sergey Dolgov,

editor of the newspaper “I want to go to the USSR”, from Mariupol, was

arrested and went missing. Massacre in Odessa, when people were burned

in the House of Trade Unions. Reprisals against people in the

“Anti-terrorist operation” zone in Donbass. These were events for which

it was possible and even necessary to hold them accountable with the

help of international legal organizations. At that time, it was possible

and necessary to initiate such action. And Russia should have done it.

It should have done it, but did not take any action on denazification

and demilitarization.




The war between Russia and the united West on the territory of Ukraine?

The version of Russia's war with the united West does not hold water at

all. To fight with the West and yet, to supply it with gas, oil, metals,

etc.? To fight with the West, and yet, to buy from it components for

their aircraft and military equipment? To fight with the West and yet,

to buy real estate there? To fight with the West and yet, to open a

business there? To fight with the West, and yet, to open accounts in its

banks? To fight with the West and yet, to place there 300 billion

dollars (almost half of Russia’s gold and foreign exchange reserves)? To

fight with the West and yet, to send your children to study in the West?

To fight with the West, and  yet, to relax, travel and live there? Is it

really possible to fight with the West this way?




There is only one conclusion to be drawn from all this. All these years,

power in Ukraine and Russia has been subordinated to the Western

masters. It was they who really oversaw the policy pursued in our

countries. It was they who led to the collapse of our industry and

agriculture. It was they who put us on foreign loans and currency

dependence. It was they who financed the nationalist and fascist

organizations. It was they who were waiting for a generation that was

ready to kill, to grow up.




A fratricidal war is going on in Ukraine. The war to which Ukraine and

Russia have been led all these thirty years. It was conducted prudently,

methodically, and most importantly,  intentionally. They carried out

nationalist politics and propaganda. In Russia – the anti-Ukrainian one,

in Ukraine – the anti-Russian one, and most importantly, the anti-Soviet

one. And the main goal of this war is the destruction of our peoples by

our own hands.




And we, ordinary people, people of different ethnic group, are blind and

deaf. We hear and see nothing behind national flags, traditional

clothes, slogans and songs. Military spending is increased not only by

the EU countries, but also by the United States. Fifteen countries

supply weapons to Ukraine. And sixteen thousand foreign volunteers are

ready to fight in the conflict zone from both sides. The military forces

of different countries are being pulled up to the borders of the EU

countries, freezing in anticipation.




And we naively hope for peace talks, not realizing that Das Kapital does

not need peace. We do not see how the fire of the World War flares up,

into which the West, without hiding, generously throws its grenade

launchers, grenades, anti-tank and small arms, and most importantly,

money. France allocates 1.2 billion euros to Ukraine, the United States

- 13.6 billion dollars. But we do not see and do not understand that we

are under the Iron Heel of the World capital and we are fighting for its

money and for its interests. Blinded, we rush into war ourselves and

push our children into it. So, in order to see this clearly, will we

really have to wash ourselves with blood again ?!



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