These days a delegation from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) visited the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) controlled now by the Russian invaders. The scientists of IAEA were led through the ZNPP territory by a Russian representative to a hole made by an artillery shell. It was apparent that the shell came from the direction of territories occupied by Russia. But the Russian “guide” made an effort to “explain” that when the shell hits the ground, it (somehow) jumps and turns around, so that it actually must have arrived from the Ukrainian side.
This lie is very typical for Russians. This isn’t just an exaggeration or ideological framing. This is a complete and absolute bullshit… You know, “jumping artillery shells” – the ones produced specifically to turn around after impact to make Russia look bad. But as one German guy once said, the people would sooner believe a big lie than a small one, because when the people hear the big lie they cannot imagine that someone would lie in such a shameless way.
I am sure that IAEA employees were expecting an “explanation” like the one they’ve heard from the Russian “guide”. I am sure they fully realize this “explanation” is nonsense. I am also sure many media (paid by Moscow, but not only them) will quote this “explanation” as a “scientifically proven fact”. I am sure there will be many people all around the globe who would eagerly believe this “alternative fact”. And there will be a discussion about who is really shelling an NPP in the middle of Ukrainian territory. Oh, everything is not so simple, right?
It’s Russia who’s shelling the ZNPP, of course. But this is not the point, really.
The nonsensical lie in this particular case is not the real problem. The problem is that IAEA together with the rest of the world is asking wrong questions. They want to know who shelled the ZNPP. But the proper question addressed to that Russian guy would be something like this: what the hell are you doing on the Ukrainian territory and when will you get the fuck out of here back to your land of swamps and shit? That is truly the question #1.
This should be the beginning and the end of each conversation with Russians: “what are YOU doing here? Go home!” Any going into details on which particular facility they damaged directly or indirectly is absolutely secondary, even if we speak about ZNPP. Every single problem caused by the war is a consequence of the decision made by the Russian leadership, implemented by the Russian military and supported by the Russian people. Every bullet or shell (even those shot by the Ukrainian forces), every death (including the deaths of Russian soldiers), the sharp increase of prices (also in the West), families separated, plans and dreams shattered – all of it wouldn’t have happened if not for Russian invasion and Russian continued presence on our land.
Without a doubt, Russia committed numerous terrible war crimes on Ukrainian soil. And Russia must answer and PAY COMPENSATIONS for all and each of them. But not for one second may we forget the crime #1: Russia breached the sanctity of the borders of another sovereign country. And it happened not this February, but in 2014. And it has been in itself a crime big enough to suffice for blocking Russia from the global markets, to ban Russian citizens’ travels, to cancel Russian culture etc… that is, of course, if we assume that the “rules-based world order” is indeed worth anything.
If some armed psycho broke into your neighbor’s house, you do not have to wait until he rapes your neighbor’s wife or shits on your neighbor’s bed or eats your neighbor’s dog to say that this man is a criminal and must be punished.
The world didn’t have to wait for the Bucha massacre or the devastation of Mariupol to happen in order to provide all the needed help to Ukraine and impose all possible sanctions on Russia. If the West was faster in this regard many of the tragedies we’ve seen already (and will see again soon) could’ve been prevented. Unfortunately, while we hear an awful lot of pointless calls for “peace” the world powers behave not like they indeed want to put an end to this war (which can be achieved only with the defeat of the invader), but rather they behave like they wish to see how low could Russia fall in the style of their war crimes, how much more inhuman Russian forces will become.
Alas, they do not truly degenerate further. They were like this from the very beginning… Or, at least since the war in Chechnya, where the Russian war crimes were pretty much similar to what we saw in Bucha and Mariupol.
The nuclear blackmailing around the ZNPP is also nothing truly new. It fits perfectly into a very usual Russian pattern of bullying. Russia always tries to “raise the stakes”. Each of their crimes must be more terrible and reckless than the last one. And then all of a sudden they want to negotiate – because this way they hope to normalize, legalize all their previous “lesser” atrocities.
OK, we won’t turn the planet into a nuclear wasteland, but only if you allow us to continue the invasions and genocides of neighboring nations, high-level political corruption and further sliding down into totalitarianism.
…But if the world agrees to such a deal, the bully will come back soon with new demands and new threats. Such is the nature of any bully, such is the nature of Russia as an international actor.
The only treatment here: no crime can be ever forgiven or forgotten, even the most “minor” sin of “simply” crossing the Ukrainian border on tanks, even if it had never led to any deaths or destruction, must be harshly condemned and punished. And every Russian must be reminded of it constantly, lest they turn to explaining how artillery shells behave on impact or talk about secret CIA biolabs and reptoids controlling freemasons with 5G vaccines.
Дамітріанство 