Insane Kremlin’s Ukraine Division Rhetoric

As tensions escalate between Russia and Ukraine, the Kremlin has adopted a strategy of intensifying rhetoric aimed at dividing Ukraine for consumption by Western audiences. This calculated move signals a shift in Russia’s approach to the conflict, as it seeks to shape international perceptions and garner support for its actions in the region.

Kremlin Rhetoric

Details: According to ISW, Russia is taking this action to legitimize the narrative of separation in Western discourse regarding Ukraine. On February 5, Dmitry Medvedev, the Deputy Head of Russia’s Security Council, asserted that supposed European plans to construct a railway line from Spain to Lviv are proof that the West recognizes Lviv as “the new capital of Ukraine within the borders of [Lviv Oblast]” following the conclusion of Russia’s war in that country.

ISW emphasized that this proposal in particular is an independent European infrastructure initiative that has nothing to do with the boundaries of Ukraine or the resolution of the conflict there.

Notably, Medvedev tweeted his remarks on Twitter using the English handle X instead of the Russian Telegram account, suggesting that his remarks were meant for a global audience rather than a Russian one.

According to ISW, Medvedev’s remarks support a Russian disinformation campaign that portrays Ukraine as a fictitious nation.

By doing this, they hope to lessen the military backing that the West has provided to Ukraine and normalize relations with Russia, which is pressuring Ukraine to hand over large portions of its territory and people to end the conflict legally.

ISW further noted that key Russian authorities, including Russian President Vladimir Putin, have again recently been promoting the narrative that views the invasion of Ukraine as a historically legitimate imperial conquest.

They suggested in December 2023—to primarily Russian-speaking audiences—that Russia and other European nations split off Ukraine and keep it as a “sovereign” state within the limits of the Lviv Oblast. Later, a few politicians from Central Europe who were right-wing nationalists gave this considerable attention.

According to ISW’s assessment, Putin is still pursuing his maximalist objectives in Ukraine, which essentially entail the total surrender of both the West and Ukraine.

The ISW’s Key Takeaways from February 5th are as follows:

On February 4, US Senate negotiators released their proposed supplemental appropriations measure. If approved, it would give Ukraine security assistance worth about US$60 billion, the vast majority of which would go to US corporations and US and allied military forces.

On February 4, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy declared that the country needed to replace “a series of state leaders” who are “not just in a single sector,” like the military, throughout the Ukrainian government.

By capitalizing on innocent and unrelated themes, the Kremlin is stepping up its rhetoric in favor of the hypothetical division of Ukraine. This is probably an attempt to normalize the partition narrative in Western talks about Ukraine.

Western security aid delays are making Ukraine’s shell scarcity worse and making it more difficult for Ukraine to employ expensive Western counterbattery weapons.

Due to his higher-than-expected popularity, Boris Nadezhdin, the only anti-war candidate from Russia, might not be permitted by the Kremlin to compete in the March 2024 presidential election.

It has been stated that the Russian government is secretly nationalizing private companies.

Amid ongoing positional action along the whole lines, Russian forces achieved definite advances northeast of Bakhmut, near Kupiansk, Kreminna, and Avdiivka.

The Federal Security Service (FSB) of Russia may add more courses to the FSB Academy’s curriculum for female students.

Using patronage networks with Russian federal subjects (regions), Russian occupation authorities persist in their attempts to indoctrinate Ukrainian children into Russian culture and nationalism.