At least we have each other
Edward's weekly news roundup & open thread (June 27, 2023)
Ahoj, welcome to Edward Slavsquat’s NOT-Weekend Link-Dump & Open Thread. You have permission to shill any and all links in the comments section. Or you can just say hi. It’s an open thread—do what you must. Please be courteous, though.
Now for the link-dump.
News from Russian media
The investigation into the case of the armed rebellion of Wagner PMC, initiated by the Russian FSB on June 23, was closed on Tuesday. [TASS]
Prigozhin released a statement yesterday commenting on why he launched his “SMO”: He said that without taking action, Wagner would have been disbanded on July 1, and that Russia’s senior military leadership needed to be held to account. He also expressed regret over the Russian pilots who were killed by his fighters. Many other interesting details. [Telegram]
Putin condemned the “treasonous” mutiny by Wagner in a speech on Monday evening. He added that the “courage and self-sacrifice of the heroic pilots who died during the Saturday events” saved the country from “terrible consequences” [RT/Twitter]
Alexander Lukashenko said it was painful for Belarusians to watch the recent events in Russia, because “the Fatherland is one.” [TASS]
Private military companies (PMCs) will not be able to enter into contracts with prisoners. This privilege is now reserved for the Ministry of Defense. [Interfax]
On June 26 on the Moscow Exchange, the dollar exchange rate exceeded 86.5 rubles, and the euro approached 95 rubles. Initially, the dollar exchange rate reached 86.77 rubles, and the euro 94.8 rubles. [TASS]
The authorities of Ukraine and UNESCO have agreed on the removal of shrines from the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service announced. [RIA Novosti]
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva called for resolving the conflict in Ukraine through the conclusion of peace agreements, taking into account the interests of both sides. (This statement was made before Prigozhin’s SMO.) [RIA Novosti]
The risks of new variants of the coronavirus emerging, which may be more easily transmitted or cause more severe illness, remain despite the end of global pandemic emergency, according to Anna Popova, the head of Rospotrebnadzor. [TASS]
What Vladimir Putin talked about at SPIEF 2023 [Vedomosti]
Domino’s Pizza customers in Russia have complained about the cancellation of a promotion that offered free pizza for life to those who got a tattoo of the company’s logo. Angry customers are now demanding compensation. [Kommersant]
Moscow’s “chief sanitary doctor” has officially canceled all COVID measures. [Anna Rudneva]
Non-oil and gas GDP fully recovered in the first quarter of 2023, exceeding the level of the same period last year by 1.3%, according to Rosstat. [Kommersant]
Since May 5, about 90 enterprises in the Belgorod region have stopped working as the result of shelling from the Ukrainian military. The businesses were forced to halt operations due to damage to infrastructure, or the lack of electricity and gas. [Interfax]
Sber has started to send notifications to clients about the transfer of collected biometric personal data to the Unified Biometric System (UBS) [Anna Rudneva]
Even more migrants: Our future was decided at SPIEF 2023 [Military Review]
The Russian Government is preparing to make significant cuts to the federal budget, which could amount to a 10-15% (from 2.9 to 4.4 trillion rubles) reduction in spending. Officials have not revealed what this policy of spending “prioritization” will affect, but said all social obligations will be fulfilled in full. [Nakanune]
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during a speech before the US Congress, said he supported the “territorial integrity” of Ukraine . He also urged world leaders to “respect international law, the principles of the UN charter and adhere to territorial integrity and sovereignty.” (Also said before the Prigozhin SMO.) [Kapital Rus]
In an English-language translation, Dugin argues that Moscow must take advantage of “a broad spectrum of possibilities for escalating conflict with conventional weapons”. He claims that “simply threatening that we will respond if necessary, and that we have what we need, is clearly not enough. We have to respond.” (Not an endorsement—just sharing.) [Geopolitika]
Edward’s dispatches in foreign languages
Poutine a-t-il eu raison de brandir un projet de paix non signé par l’Ukraine ?- par Edward Slavsquat [lecourrierdesstrateges.fr]
Kreml i cyfrowe “paszporty zdrowotne” QR [Kmieciowe Odmęty]
MOSCA SI UNIRÀ AL SISTEMA DI “CERTIFICATI SANITARI” DIGITALI DELL’OMS? [comedonchisciotte.org]
It has been a very hectic week, so if you sent me a translation and it is not included above, please contact me, or leave a link in the comments, and I will add it in the next Open Thread. As a reminder: You are free to translate anything on this blog—no permission necessary. Thank you again to those who take the time to share this blog’s content in their native languages—it is really a great honor, and extremely humbling.
Edward’s media appearances
Yesterday I spoke with TNT’s Jesse Zurawell about Prigozhin’s SMO.
Last week I chatted with Rolo about the very curious (failed) “treaty” that allegedly prompted Russia’s withdrawal from various Ukrainian regions in March-April 2022.
I will be joining my friend John O’Loughlin today at 11 a.m. EST to discuss the recent developments in Russia. I believe he will post a link to the livestream on his Twitter account shortly before we begin our discussion. Or you can wait for our chat to begin on his Rumble page. Tune in!
Take care internet friends.
—Riley
“Domino’s Pizza customers in Russia have complained about the cancellation of a promotion that offered free pizza for life to those who got a tattoo of the company’s logo. Angry customers are now demanding compensation.”
Truly, Russia and the West have more in common than either realise.
Edvard, I am going to give you my understanding of the context in which this mutiny took place. First of all, Wagner is the creation of the GRU and another Russian agency that is responsible for internal security. It was created specifically to get around the constitutional limits that make it challenging to deploy Russian military assets abroad. The way that was done was by creating a private company and installing Yevginy Prigozhin as the figurative head. I want to emphasise that Prigozhin is a civilian with no military experience. He has not and did not lead the Wagner troops in battle. He is a two time criminal from the epoch when the Soviet Union broke up. He leveraged his contacts and connections to make himself useful to those in power and developed friendship with those in power including Putin. It is false to think that Prigozhin thought up Wagner. In military terms, there is always someone who is or was part of the Russian military who organises and leads the Wagner forces in any situation where they have been involved. If you want to understand the vast difference in education of Russian military compared to those in most western countries including the US, look at the level of strategic planning, operational and tactical training. The US and UK among others are far inferior. Prigozhin doesn't have a scintilla of this training. Read Andrei Martyanov's books on this to better understand this. I have would also add that Wagner has been given access to some of the Russian military's most modern assets. In many ways it makes Wagner into the Russian equivalent of the French Foreign Legion. (Part 2 coming)