The Independent posted on G+: State television presenter warns Russia could “turn the US into radioactive dust’
The Russian propaganda offensive, working overtime on the social networks – trolling every post even remotely referring to Russia and Ukraine. That leads to some ludicrous exchanges, like this quote:
Maksim Markov’s post, particularly the sentence: “rejoice with Crimeans for the happy reunion with their families” would make sense if we were talking about North and South Korea, not in a European context, where there are no tightly shut borders. Ever since the fall of the Soviet Union, European citizens and its neighbouring countries have been enjoying free movement around the continent. At worst, a visa is required for non-EU members – rarely. People speaking different languages can live all over the continent and meet their families as frequently as they want, without troops having to change borders at the whim of a half-wit dictator. People who know that the Russian economy is facing a downturn have found nothing better than to reignite the cold war, to distract their people’s attention from their incompetence and corruption. Democracies don’t need iron curtains and guard towers to keep their people from fleeing – in fact, they have trouble keeping out the masses of people trying to get in, like in Ceuta-Melilla and Lampedusa. Do we need to mention the great Ukrainian famine and Tatar deportation by the arch-friendly Soviet overlord, to remember why some people may feel somewhat reticent towards their Russian neighbours? The Americans did indeed bomb the Japanese, who were mortal enemies at the time. The Soviet Union condemned millions of its own citizens to internal exile, deportation and death in labour camps – and they were not external enemies, just citizens who may have had – or were suspected of having – different opinions.