Ivanovna or “Babuška Z” is now immortalized in murals, posters, postcards, bumper stickers and songs. A statue of Mariupol was also made for him.
Anna From IvanovnaA 69-year-old woman from Kharkov, has become a symbol of Russian war propaganda.
Ivanovna got the nickname “Babuška Z” widespread on social media video with.
In Russian, babuška means grandma. The letter Z has again become a symbol of the Russian army during the war of aggression launched by the country in Ukraine.
In the video, Ivanovna walks towards two Ukrainian soldiers with the Soviet flag in his hand. After that, the soldiers say they have come to help and offer the woman food.
The soldiers then take the flag in Ivanovna’s hands, put it on the ground and step on the flag.
Ivanovna considered the actions of the soldiers offensive. He returned the food bag provided by the soldiers and said “my parents died because of this flag in World War II”.
Although Russia thought the Ukrainians welcomed the country’s armed forces generously, in reality they have faced civilian resistance in many of the territories they occupy.
Ivanovna’s recorded encounter with Ukrainian soldiers allowed the Russian propaganda machinery to portray him as a Ukrainian who praises the Soviet Union and considers Russian soldiers liberators.
To the BBC in an interview he says that is not really the case.
“How could I support the killing of my own people? My grandchildren and their children had to flee to Poland. We live in the midst of fear and terror, ”he says.
Ivanovna says publicity has become a burden for him. Residents of his home village have rejected him because they consider him pro-Russian.
“I am not happy that I was made famous because Ukraine now considers me a traitor.”
He adds that he thought the Ukrainian soldiers seen in the video were Russian.
“I was just happy that the Russians would come and not fight us.”
Ivanovna also says in an interview that for her, the Soviet flag represents anything but massacre.
“It represents love and joy in every family, in every city, and in every country.”
Ivanovnan his hometown Velika Dimerka in the Kiev region has been destroyed by the Russians, and his home has not been spared any destruction. The BBC says the windows in his house are scattered, the roof is damaged and there are grenade shards on the lawn.
“They don’t care about the Ukrainians, they just want to conquer our country,” Ivanovna says.
He also has a clear message to the president To Vladimir Putin.
“If I could talk to him, I would say you made a mistake. What have we Ukrainian workers done to earn this? We are the ones who suffer the most. ”
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