A-Infos (en) Italy, UCADI, #209 - Ukraine: The truth must be erased (ca, de, it, pt, tr)[machine translation]

The more time passes, the more the Western media's narrative of the war 
in Ukraine becomes pure fiction . They accuse the Russians of sending 
drones to the West, and then it's "discovered" that the drones are 
Ukrainian. They claim that Putin is losing support (but he wasn't a 
dictator, why worry about approval ratings?), forgetting that the likes 
of Starmer, Mertz, and Macron, all put together, have lower approval 
ratings than Putin. They accuse the Russians of causing civilian deaths, 
and then it's discovered that the Ukrainians are bombing and killing 
their own population. They claim that Russia is in economic crisis, yet 
the Russian deficit is equal to 19% of GDP, while Germany (the most 
virtuous country in Europe) is at 60% (not to mention Italy, well above 
100%, as is the US).
Finally, Ukrainian troops are said to have regained ground in 2026, but 
it's unclear where all this ground is, and instead it turns out that two 
of the most fortified cities in Donbas, Kostyantynivka and Liman, have 
now fallen under Russian control. Let's try to put some order into this. 
Kostyantynivka is the southernmost city in a belt of fortified cities, 
built starting in 2014, immediately after the Maidan coup, to defend 
Donbas. Its collapse is strategically important because it cuts off one 
of the supply routes to the last two fortifications, Sloviansk and 
Kramatorsk, which could also be easily captured. To be clear, 
Kostyantynivka is more important than Pokrovsk, which nevertheless 
occupied the press, including the Ukrainian one, for a month or two in 
late 2025, when attempts were made to claim it was still in Ukrainian 
hands. This time, however, there's absolute silence; Kostjantynivka 
doesn't even seem to exist; no one even makes the effort to deny the 
defeat. Better to divert attention from the unpleasant reality and focus 
on hypothetical away victories and the "publicized" Russian misdeeds; as 
for Liman, who opens the road to Siversk, the same thing.

Drones that go

They tell us the tide has turned: Ukraine is now capable of crippling 
Russia by sending drones that strike deep within hundreds (if not 
thousands) of kilometers from the border. Strictly speaking, this is 
correct: it's true that drones can start fires in very distant 
refineries. It's also true that the Russian population suffers some 
hardship, but we need to be more quantitative and make realistic 
comparisons to understand the magnitude of this phenomenon.
First of all, it's worth noting that the farther a drone travels, the 
more fuel it must carry to reach its target; therefore, the less 
explosive it can carry. Furthermore, a drone's strike on a refinery 
isn't enough to put it out of action. A drone can start a fire; a photo 
can be taken and put on the front page of newspapers to show the damage 
caused. In reality, refineries are huge beasts; the problems caused by a 
single drone (or a few) can be quickly fixed. It takes much more than 
that to cause a fuel shortage in a country where numerous refineries are 
not operating at full capacity.
The Ukrainians are described as technologically advanced. There's no 
question about the qualities of the individuals, but the story is once 
again different from how it's told. The heart of the drones are tiny 
"chips" produced in China and typically sold to Asian countries (such as 
Malaysia and Thailand), where local companies act as intermediaries with 
Western Europe (unable to produce the chips themselves). At the end of 
the supply chain, the chips are donated to Ukraine, which is responsible 
for unpacking the crates and assembling everything, as is typically done 
with IKEA purchases.
In any case, the latest news indicates that Russia is rapidly developing 
a satellite system similar to Musk's Starlink, which would allow (from a 
defensive perspective) more efficient monitoring of Russian skies, 
particularly the detection of drones. The development is at an advanced 
stage in the sense that everything is working, but a greater number of 
satellites need to be put into orbit: we'll see if the Russians have 
enough washing machines to collect the chips.

Drones coming

In addition to the Ukrainian drones striking Russia, there are also 
"Russian" ones causing civilian casualties in Ukraine and terrorizing 
Western Europe. In recent days, it's become very fashionable to comment 
on the alleged bombing of the Perchersk Lavra monastery in Kiev. Horror: 
the Russians allegedly tried to destroy a UNESCO site! Even Macro-leon 
is outraged. Where were UNESCO and Macro-leon in 2023, when the 
Ukrainians did everything they could to seize the monastery (operated by 
the Moscow Orthodox Church), arresting priests and monks, and above all, 
raiding icons, relics, and books to resell them online? Where were the 
defenders of
world cultural heritage in 2023? Where were the defenders of Orthodox 
Christianity in 2024, when cooking shows were broadcast live from inside 
the same church?
If you were to use your brain, it's much more likely, as the Russians 
claim, that it was a faulty Patriot interceptor missile: why would 
Russia, an Orthodox country that had fiercely criticized Ukraine's 
actions in 2023, now seek to destroy what is a sacred symbol for them?
In parallel, there's the case of the bombing of a theater production 
center: costumes and other materials for the NV company; this according 
to Ukrainian media, which has been busy posting images of the damage 
caused by Russian drones to civilian infrastructure online. Then, 
someone notices that some photos show piles of drone wings. What if it 
was a drone factory? The official images have been removed, but nothing 
is removed from the internet.
Slightly less recent is the bombing of a student dormitory in 
Starobilsk, in the Lugansk region, which killed 21 students. The 
Russians had invited the Western press to visit the site to verify it 
for themselves, just as, following the attempted assassination of Putin 
in Valdai, they sent the drones' flight plan, proving it was not a 
mistake. But the Westerners don't want to look: the BBC refused to send 
journalists, and CNN didn't even respond. It just so happens that a 
freelance Irish journalist found equipment made (and assembled) in 
Starobilsk, which was used to build the Ukrainian drones. Meanwhile, the 
Ukrainians insist that soldiers from the Rubicon unit, which operates 
the Russian drones (more than 100 operators, according to them), were 
killed in that dormitory without anyone finding any evidence; all to 
hide the fact that the dead are Ukrainian citizens, or rather, citizens 
of a state that claims to be their defender, young men and women.
Months ago, there was constant talk of dozens of Russian drones entering 
Europe to threaten airports and other European infrastructure, even 
reaching Denmark. Never a single photo confirmed the existence of these 
drones. Eventually, it was admitted that these Russian drones belong to 
the same family as the Loch Ness Monster.
Instead, the existence of Ukrainian drones violating European airspace 
in the Baltics and Finland had to be certified. The immediate 
justification? Russian electronic warfare, jamming the Ukrainian drones, 
pushing them where they shouldn't be.
A quick aside for the inattentive: depending on the context, the 
Russians are either terribly backward and lack the chips for their 
weapons, or they are highly advanced and capable of manipulating Western 
technological marvels: click on the answer that suits you best.
Question from the geography professor: how do Ukrainian drones get close 
to St. Petersburg and only then do the Russians notice and manage to 
divert them? Traveling for kilometers to the border with Belarus with 
fake mustaches so as not to be recognized.
Pierino: They come directly from the Baltic countries or Finland .

Kvartal 95 Studio

From the Ukrainian side, and from the West in general, the war is being 
treated as if it were a theatrical production. The television production 
company founded by Zelensky in 2003, Kvartal 95 Studio, is very useful 
in providing adequate expertise. Unfortunately, it is increasingly in 
need of funding to build studios for realistic (but not real) filming.
By the end of 2025, Zelensky managed to convince the EU to provide EUR90 
billion, although the Europeans are having some difficulty raising it: 
issuing bonds doesn't seem easy unless individual states provide 
guarantees, each for their share.
Then the ineffable Rutte, son of the orange daddy, comes to the rescue, 
wanting to raise EUR70 billion from NATO, but since this operation also 
encounters some skepticism, the little green ogre himself immediately 
steps forward and asks for EUR20 billion (perhaps to set diamonds in the 
gold toilets he purchased previously). Meanwhile, the case of the oil 
tanker Smyrtos illustrates the kind of spectacles that can be staged 
with the cooperation of His Majesty King Charles III's fleet. The ship, 
supposedly belonging to the Russian shadow fleet, was captured by 
intrepid British subjects. The script, however, needs some tweaking, as 
the ship was flying the Cameroonian flag (previously Greek) and 
therefore had nothing to do with Russia. In any case, the British were 
able to have their own cameraman aboard before boarding to capture 
close-up shots: who knows if the film will be nominated for the next Oscar.

Democracy as a unifying factor

Meanwhile, to make sure nothing is left undone, Zelensky has decided to 
give a hero's burial to Andriy Melnyk, who during World War II 
collaborated with the Nazis with a capital SS, contributing to the 
massacre of hundreds of thousands of Poles, Jews, and Russians. This is 
the epilogue that follows dozens of squares, streets, and statues named 
after or erected in memory of Bandera supporters. The decision is 
unpalatable even to Polish President Nawrocki, who threatened to strip 
Zelensky of the Order of the White Eagle, Poland's highest honor, 
awarded for civil and military merit (presented by his predecessor, 
Duda). We'll see in the next act of the comedy whether the scenery will 
be rewritten. Meanwhile, the EU is doing its best to bridge the 
democratic gap with Ukraine so as not to leave it to become fascist on 
its own. The policy of ad personam, left and right (they are slightly 
unilateral)
sanctions is coming in handy. Among others, we recall the cases of a 
Swiss colonel living in Brussels whose livelihood is supported by 
friends who deliver food to his home; a German journalist in Berlin who 
is legally forbidden even to buy a sandwich; and a Swiss-Cameroonian 
activist in Lomé who cannot fly home. All this without any of these 
cases (or similar ones) having been brought to trial with the 
opportunity to defend themselves against the charges.

Putin's strategy

A question arises: why do the Russians accept this state of affairs? Why 
do they allow NATO to send drones from their soil; why do they allow 
NATO to guide drones and missiles onto Russian soil?
Short of launching a tactical nuclear bomb, as Karaganov suggested, it's 
natural to ask why the Russians don't bomb supply routes from the West? 
Almost all military equipment comes from Poland and Romania, by road or 
rail. Why is it still possible to reach Kiev without too many problems 
(almost every day some American or European politician visits the 
Ukrainian capital) by arriving by train? Why has Putin even banned the 
local press from criticizing Trump? Even Foreign Minister Lavrov had to 
walk back his rash statement after the dormitory bombing, that a 
systematic military campaign had begun to target command centers. 
Putin's subsequent statements have played the whole thing down.
In fact, it must be acknowledged that contrary to what many (especially 
Zelensky) believe, it's not true that once Putin is out of the way, an 
agreement (read: capitulation) with Russia can be reached. The situation 
is completely opposite. Strange as it may seem, more or less secretly, 
contacts (mostly by telephone) are continuing between Kiril Dimitriev, 
Putin's chosen envoy, and Steve Witkoff. The only explanation is that 
Putin still harbors hopes of obtaining something from the Americans, 
despite the fact that they haven't withdrawn from Ukraine (at least 
they've stopped supplying truckloads of weapons).
The strategy isn't absurd if we consider the medium- to long-term 
prospects. The Russians certainly have little doubt about their military 
success, as evidenced by Putin's recent speech on June 12th, marking 
Russia Day, when he set 2030 as the deadline for bringing the new 
oblasts (including Kherson and Zaporizhia, as well as Donetsk and 
Lugansk) into economic and logistical conditions comparable to the rest 
of the country. However, the structural stability of Europe remains an 
unknown factor, especially given the (foolishly) bellicose attitude of 
the Western ruling class.
The feeling is that Putin is therefore trying not to antagonize Trump; 
according to some analysts (John Helmer in particular), by offering 
economic advantages to Trump and his family (see the Middle East), 
otherwise known as bribery.
The idea doesn't seem far-fetched, considering that Dimitriev (like 
Witkoff, and even less so Kushner) is NOT a professional diplomat, but 
the head of a Russian investment fund.
As long as Putin continues to believe this "negotiatory" path can 
succeed, it is highly unlikely that the Russians will radically change 
their strategy (lead to continued inexorable advances on the ground).
Meanwhile, it should also be remembered that Duma elections will be held 
in September, and polls show a decline in the United Russia party, which 
supports Putin, to the advantage of the Communist and Liberal Democratic 
parties.
Knowing how things are going in Russia and noting that the economic 
situation is not particularly dire (certainly not compared to the 
stagnant European economies), with the help of some electoral trickery, 
there are no cataclysms in sight.
In any case, it is unreasonable to expect that any changes in the Duma 
majority will alter Russia's military posture toward the West, as 
Zelensky seems to hope when he selected an old-fashioned oligarch like 
Abramivich to establish contact with Russia: a net zero result. Some 
have even speculated that the bombing of the dormitory in Lugansk was 
retaliation for the failure of the idea.
How long will Russian advances be swept under the rug? How long will the 
Russians not carpet-bomb?

PS: Meanwhile, the Poles have stripped Zelensky of his honor, and he 
took advantage of the opportunity to show his nationalist side. Zelensky 
accused the Poles of NOT stripping Catherine II, Mussolini, and 
Schroeder of their honors, receiving the following response from a 
representative of the Polish presidential cabinet: " The first two have 
been dead for a long time, and we don't usually strip honors 
posthumously. As for Schroeder, when he was in power, he didn't have 
busts or statues erected to Hitler or Himmler . The people of Europe are 
tired of war, of seeing the return of fascism and Nazism, which they 
thought they had eradicated and definitively defeated, of seeing 
xenophobic, identitarian, and racist nationalisms triumph."
What is happening is giving rise to Kremlin hawks, who are increasingly 
criticizing Putin, blaming him for a war of attrition. To prevent them 
from prevailing, they are proposing to drop a few nuclear warheads on 
Ukraine, choosing from the 6,500 they have at their disposal.

Antonio Politi

https://www.ucadi.org/2026/06/27/ucraina-veritas-delenda-est/
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