The Real Russia. Today.

Russia changes its mind about the EU, a firsthand look at those ‘filtration camps’ for Ukrainian refugees, and an escape from Mariupol

Thursday, May 12, 2022

For ongoing coverage of the invasion of Ukraine and its consequences back in Russia, follow Meduza’s live updates. Please note that the authorities are now blocking our website in Russia, and we’re turning to you, our global audience, for financial support.

In today’s newsletter:

• Latest news
• Refugee life in Russia’s ‘filtration camps’
• The Kremlin reportedly told regional officials to dedicate street names to Donbas fighters as part of its ‘referendum’ preparations
• Three civilians describe their escape from Mariupol’s Azovstal steel plant

Major recent events in Russia and Ukraine

• 🕊️ Moscow refreshes its geopolitical messaging: Russia’s First Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN, Dmitry Polyanskiy, announced that Moscow now opposes Ukrainian membership in the European Union. Polyanskiy said the policy shift is a response to EU Foreign Policy chief Josep Borrell Fontelles declaring in early April that the war with Russia “will be won on the battlefield.” EU membership can no longer be part of a peace agreement with Ukraine, Polyanskiy said on Thursday. He also warned that Finland and Sweden would become “potential military targets for Russia” the moment that NATO subdivisions arrive in those nations.
• ⚖️ Halt, in the name of the law: Russia’s Justice Ministry has proposed legislation that would disbar defense attorneys who are licensed to practice the law in “unfriendly” countries. The bill would also bar all lawyers from those countries from working in Russia. The government’s current list of “unfriendly” countries includes all EU members, the United States, Great Britain, Canada, South Korea, Japan, Ukraine, Taiwan, Norway, Australia, and several more nations.
• 🏭 Idle hands: AvtoVAZ, Russia's largest car manufacturer, will idle all operations for all of next week, due to a parts shortage.
• 🏆 Not the right time for TV awards: Russia’s equivalent of the Emmys (the TEFI) has been canceled for the third straight year. In 2020 and 2021, organizers cited the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. This year, the Kremlin’s culture adviser told journalists that it would be “inappropriate” to stage the ceremony during Russia’s “special military operation” in Ukraine.

🛂 Ukrainian refugees give firsthand accounts of ‘filtration camps’ run by Russian troops (16-min read)

According to Russian officials, roughly 1 million people have been forced to evacuate from Ukraine into Russia since Moscow began its full-scale invasion on February 24. In many areas, evacuating civilians into Ukrainian-controlled territory is simply impossible due to Russian shelling. Left with no other way to safety, refugees are being forcibly deported to Russia via the Kremlin-controlled “Donetsk People’s Republic” (DNR) and occupied Crimea. Along the way, they are subjected to a lengthy “filtration” process run by Russian troops, which often involves spending several days in camps. In interviews with Meduza, Ukrainian refugees gave firsthand accounts of how this system works.

🎈 The Kremlin is renaming streets across the country in honor of Donbas combatants, hoping to ‘prime public opinion’ for another annexation (7-min read)

On May 9, when Russia celebrates the USSR’s victory against Nazi Germany, several regions across the country announced that they were renaming local streets in honor of soldiers and political figures from the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DNR). For example, the cities of Grozny, Yakutsk, and Omsk dedicated streets to Alexander Zakharchenko, the DNR’s leader until his assassination in August 2018. Other cities announced streets named after Vladimir Zhoga, also known by his nom de guerre “Vokha,” who commanded the Sparta Battalion, a pro-Russian separatist force in Donetsk, until his death in March 2022 in combat with the Ukrainian military. Also on May 9, Zhoga’s father met personally with Russia’s president. Meduza has learned that these dedications and Vladimir Putin’s sit-down with Artem Zhoga are parts of a strategy developed by the Kremlin to “prime public opinion” for Russia’s annexation of the separatist “republics” in Donetsk and Luhansk.

🧑‍🏭 Three Azovstal steel plant workers tell the story of their escape (20-min read)

The Azovstal steel plant remains the sole point of resistance against the Russian invaders in Mariupol. Though fighting has been ongoing outside of the plant for almost two months, none of the civilians hiding inside were evacuated until April 30. Azovstal workers Ilya and Pavlo (names changed) were some of the first civilians to escape the plant; they’re now safe in Zaporozhye. They spoke to Meduza along with Azovstal HR director Ivan Goltvenko, who left the city on March 9 and has been helping others escape ever since.

Yours, Meduza