Press
Russia probably fears for its billions – the USA could send frozen Kremlin assets to Ukraine. Former President Medvedev responds with a threat.
Moscow – Russian propaganda has been going on since the beginning of the year at the latest Ukraine war, at full speed. At the spearhead of disinformation is one of Vladimir Putin's closest and most loyal confidant: Dmitri Anatolyevich Medvedev. The former Russian president railed on his Telegram channel against a recent US decision to seize frozen Russian assets. He even conjures up a “hybrid war” between the United States and Russia.
USA confiscates Russian assets – and donates them to Ukraine
What may have further fueled Medvedev's anger is that the US want to send the confiscated money to Ukraine. Again Berlin courier reported, around six to eight billion dollars could flow from Russian hands to the war enemy – “shameless theft,” as Medvedev calls it on his Telegram channel.
But that's not all: the US decision could increase pressure on other Western countries to do the same. The amount of money that Russia would lose would be many times higher than the billions confiscated so far. It is estimated that the West has frozen Russian assets worth around 276 billion euros.
Within the EU However, there are some concerns as to whether the billions from Russia should really be made available to Ukraine. Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD), for example, called the issue “terribly complicated”. By confiscating the assets, the EU could also make itself vulnerable to Russian claims for recourse. The country has already announced corresponding measures.
Medvedev accuses the USA of “hybrid war” against Russia and threatens consequences
Medvedev is clearly indignant in his post: “The unexpected happened,” he writes on Telegram. “Your state declared a hybrid war on us.” Russia itself regularly fails Cyber attacks and hybrid warfare against other countries on. However, the “shameless theft of our valuables” will not go unanswered, threatens the ex-president. But since Russia has comparatively few US assets, the reaction can only be “asymmetrical”.
A post earlier, Medvedev had even harsher words for the United States and its announced $61 billion in aid to Ukraine. Nobody doubted that the “US bastards” would help Ukraine. He also described Ukraine as a “neo-Nazi gang,” a classic Russian propaganda narrative to legitimize the war of aggression against the country.
Medvedev and Russian propaganda
This is far from the first time that Putin's confidant has presented himself as the Kremlin's propaganda mouthpiece. He does not shy away from direct threats against individual countries. At the end of February he also addressed Germany and spoke of fatal consequences for the country if Russia wins against Ukraine.
Russia's propaganda has a specific goal: to stir up chaos and fear in the West. “It's much harder to change people's minds and positions than simply sow doubt or fear,” Andy Carvin, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council think tank's digital forensics research lab, told US magazine Time. Russia is trying to create chaos and uncertainty in the West. This could lead to a loss of morale and weaken support for Ukraine. (nhi)
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