Kristaps Andrejsons

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Russian soldiers train at a military camp in 1991. David Turnley/Corbis/via Getty Images

Europa,

In early 2006, Russian Pvt. Andrei Sychyov had his legs and genitals amputated from frostbite after he and at least seven other conscripts were forced to squat in the snow for hours during New Year’s Eve celebrations, during which they were brutally beaten. It took three days for him to get any medical aid. In 2018, Pvt. Artyom Pakhotin had the word petukh—meaning rooster (figuratively, “prison bitch”)—carved into his forehead as a punishment for smoking in the barracks. Two weeks later, he killed himself with his AK. On Oct. 25, 2019, conscript Ramil Shamsutdinov opened fire on fellow soldiers, killing eight of them, after what he said was a prolonged period of beatings and threats of rapes.…  Seguir leyendo »

The destruction of the Rus fleet at Constantinople from the collection of the Russian National Library, St. Petersburg. Heritage Images/Getty Images

Europa, ,

There are plenty of economic and security explanations for the Ukraine crisis. And they’re useful, but they’re not enough. The cultural, historical, and religious underpinnings of the conflict between Moscow and Kyiv go back to fundamental questions of what Russia even is, what it means to be Russian, and who gets to own the myths of the past.

On July 12, 2021, the Kremlin’s official website published an article by Russian President Vladimir Putin called “On the Historical Unity of Russians and Ukrainians.” It’s a key guide to the historical stories that shape Putin’s and many Russian’s attitudes.

Firstly, Putin and many Russians believe that Russians and Ukrainians are the same people, “brother nations,” with one group called Velikorossy (“Great Russians”) and the other, the Ukrainians, Malorossy (“Little Russians”).…  Seguir leyendo »