The Real Russia. Today.

Mariupol’s last-standing defenders, Germany’s crisis of guilt, and the Kremlin puts on a happy face

Wednesday, April 20, 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
• Missing sailors’ parents speak out
• Kremlin PR’s new toxic positivity
• The new German guilt (about its ‘special relationship’ with Russia)
• Turkey thrives in the middle between Russia and the EU
• More desperate pleas from Mariupol’s last-standing defenders

Major recent events in Russia and Ukraine

• 🪖 Deadlock in Mariupol: Humanitarian corridors at the Azovstal iron and steel works in Mariupol failed again on Wednesday. No one managed to escape the factory. Both sides accused each other of violating an agreement to open safe exit passages for civilians.
• 🧑‍🏫 A glance at Mariupol’s future: Together with Denis Pushilin, the head of the self-declared DNR, United Russia General Council Secretary Andrey Turchak visited the first school in Mariupol to resume classes since Russia occupied the city. “Victory will be ours, the enemy will be defeated, and peace will return to this land,” Turchak told a room of children. Separately, Mariupol’s DNR-appointed “deputy mayor,” Victoria Kalachiova, told the Russian state media that the city is excitedly preparing to celebrate the “Immortal Regiment” — a Victory Day event now co-opted by the Kremlin as a display of Russian patriotism.
• 🛢️ Germany’s pledge: Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock vowed to end German imports of Russian oil by the year’s end. “We will halve oil by the summer and will be at zero by the end of the year, and then gas will follow,” she told her Baltic counterparts.
• 🎾 No more scribblings for Andrey Rublev: Tennis players from Russia and Belarus will not be allowed to compete at Wimbledon this year due the invasion of Ukraine. “It would be unacceptable for the Russian regime to derive any benefits from the involvement of Russian or Belarusian players with The Championships,” the All England Club said in a statement.
• 📠 Help wanted: Studying archives at the Wayback Machine, researchers at the revived publication Proekt determined that there are more job vacancies posted now at Russian state media outlets than at any time in recent years. Journalists also spoke to people who have quit their jobs at these outlets who say others hope to leave, as well, but don’t know where else they can find work.
• 🛂 Rolling back the welcome mat: As an asymmetric response to Western travel restrictions imposed on Russian businesspeople, Moscow says it will introduce new restrictions on visas issued to journalists from “unfriendly countries,” limiting their visas to single-entry, and raising processing fees.
• 💳 Friends don’t let friends get secondary-sanctioned: Sanctioned Russian banks, including Russia’s biggest lender Sberbank, won’t be able to issue cards using China UnionPay, sources told the news website RBC. The Chinese financial services corporation is reportedly afraid of being hit with secondary sanctions if it does business with the Russian entities. Alfa-Bank, Otkritie, and VTB were also exploring the use of UnionPay for new bank cards. The international payment systems Visa and MasterCard withdrew from Russia on March 10.

🔱 Meduza talks to mothers of conscripts who served aboard the sunken Russian warship Moskva (5-min read)

It’s been a week since the sinking of the Russian missile cruiser Moskva. The Ukrainian side reported that it struck the Black Sea Fleet’s flagship with two Neptune anti-ship cruise missiles on April 13. In turn, the Russian Defense Ministry claimed that the Moskva sustained “serious damage” after an unexplained fire caused ammunition on board to explode; as a result, the warship allegedly sank while being towed to port in “stormy” waters. How many crew members were aboard the cruiser at the time remains unknown (though presumably they numbered in the hundreds). The Russian authorities have yet to confirm any casualties. Indeed, contrary to reports that dozens of sailors were killed, Moscow asserts that the entire crew was saved. Meduza spoke to the mothers of two Moskva crew members, who — despite the Russian Defense Ministry’s statements — haven’t contacted their loved ones since the warship sank.

📺 Desperate to convince citizens the war won't change their daily lives, the Russian authorities are flooding the airwaves with “positive” news stories (5-min read)

The war in Ukraine has been going on for two months, the list of sanctions against Russia continues to grow, and the Russian authorities are still trying to convince the world (and themselves) that the war won’t have any serious consequences for Russian citizens. In their telling, for example, the Russian economy is sure to hold strong, and the exodus of Western companies is a “historic opportunity” for Russian business owners. According to Russian government insiders, all of these messages are part of a carefully planned media campaign to “spread positivity.” Here’s how it works.

🕊️ The war in Ukraine has forced Germany to ask whether decades of its foreign policy were based on a delusion (13-min read)

Over the past several weeks, German politicians and journalists have debated the question of German guilt and responsibility for the war — including for the catastrophes in Bucha and Mariupol. The most difficult questions have been addressed to Germany’s president, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who has spent years cultivating a special relationship between Russia and Germany. Indeed, it’s hard to explain now why Germany, which supported sanctions against Russia in 2014 for the annexation of Crimea and the invasion of the Donbas, didn't divest from Russian energy years ago — in fact, its dependence has only grown in recent years. As a result, Berlin, fearful of wrecking its own country's industry, feels unable to give up Russian petroleum even now — hence Ukrainian allegations that Germany is funding Russia's war.

🕊️ Turkey finds itself caught in between Russia and the EU. That's not such a bad place to be. (15-min read)

The war in Ukraine has led Europe and the U.S. to launch an unprecedented economic blockade against Russia, deepening the rift between the putative “East” and “West” and seemingly giving rise to the return of a bipolar geopolitical world. But there is at least one regional power with significant experience balancing East and West: Turkey. The republic immediately condemned Russia’s aggression against Ukraine but has also refused to participate in sanctions against Russia. Meduza took a closer look at how Turkey has been trying to engage in economic and traditional diplomacy, overcome its own domestic political crisis, and reduce its dependence on Russia.

🙏 The last remaining Ukrainian troops in Mariupol call on world leaders to help them — and civilians — escape (6-min read)

Sergiy Volyna, commander of the Ukrainian Navy's 36th Separate Marine Brigade, which is currently mounting a last stand against Russian invaders from the Azovstal metalworks plant in Mariupol, released a video in which he calls on world leaders to evacuate the civilians and soldiers still hiding in the plant to a different country. Volyna posted the video on his Facebook page.

Yours, Meduza