An alternate source for the video, Youtube:
And, for Russian speakers and CIA analysts, the same video, but with the view from the Kremlin:
It's propaganda of course, but as I've often said before, the very best propaganda is firmly rooted in fact and "truth".
In this case, most of the video is very, VERY firmly anchored in fact. Between 40 and 50 years ago, I embarked upon a self-education journey into Russian history and culture as a part of a self-imposed "know your enemy" program. Instead of relying on CIA "Fact Books" or official US government pronouncements on the issues, I thought it might be a better idea, if one was to gain a better understanding of his enemy, to gather the "facts" from the viewpoint of the Russians, It's one thing to know what someone's enemies have to say about them, and another thing altogether to know what they say about themselves, how they view themselves and their "causes". One gives a distorted view from the outside, the other a perhaps distorted view from the inside. I considered that it would be more valuable, from the standpoint of understanding one's enemy, to be able to get inside their own heads, to be able to evaluate and incorporate how they see themselves into any plan of action regarding them.
So, to that end, I gathered information from Russian sources, including "The Great Soviet Encyclopedia" and Russian expats as well as refugees from surrounding Soviet-influences countries, such as Poland, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Yugoslavia, etc. I was blessed in that endeavor by having actual contacts in those communities, having been raised among a melting pot of first and second generation eastern Europeans in northeastern Ohio until I was around 14.
The view I got of Russian history from those sources, including the refugees from Warsaw Pact satellite states of Russia, matches perfectly with Putin's assessment in the first 30 minutes or so of the video of Russian history.
That is why I said in the beginning of the Ukrainian war, and still say, that this amounts to an internal civil war that the US has no business poking it's nose into. The Ukraine has been a part of Russia, almost non-stop, since there has even BEEN a Russia.
In the Soviet Union, and perhaps even still now, Russia had a system of internal passports called "Voyennyy bilets". They were little red identity paper booklets similar to external passports that most nations have, giving a person's life story for ID purposes which the Russians used for things like internal travel and personal identity. In Afghanistan, they were routinely taken from the bodies of dead Russians as part of intelligence gathering. Some of them specified the soldiers were from the Ukrainian "CCP" ("SSR" in English, "Soviet Socialist Republic") which was the Soviet Union's version of American states. So, if Texans or Minnessotans can be thought of as ":Americans", then Ukrainians are also "Russians" in the same sense.
So, to my thinking, this Ukrainian war is just another civil war, an internal Russian matter to resolve, none of our business. That is based upon my own take on Russian history, which is in agreement in most particulars with Putin's assessment of Russian history as gathered from primaries actually involved at some point in the area, otherwise known as "natives".
I mean, if you wanted to know about American history, would you ask an American, or a KGB agent? Would you ask an American, or someone from the CCP in China? I just applied that principle to my - at the time - enemies.
That principle has not changed. it's just one of those timeless things.
So, for an American to understand the situation in the Ukraine, I personally think it would be wise to put yourself in their shoes, see what it would look like on the other foot.
Let's say the United States collapsed (as it appears to be headed for anyhow), and the states devolved into separate "republics" as happened in Russia by and large during the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union. How do you suppose "Americans" would feel if the Chinese CCP, for instance, started making a pass at The Republic of Texas or The Republic of Florida (logical, since they already have a foothold in Mexico and Cuba, and most of the Caribbean) INSIDE what was "American" territory for almost 300 years? Do you suppose the other American republics that were formerly a part of the United States would just sit on their hands and say "oh well - that's just the way the world works now!"? Somehow, I have my doubts... but that is exactly the position Russia is in regarding the Ukraine.
I differ with Putin, however, in his assessment of the matter of China. During Soviet days, and even before (and even AFTER, until very recently), Russia had had a "tense" relationship with an expansionist China, especially along the Russo-Chinese border he mentions. They've not always been as cozy as they are now like he suggests. Furthermore, the CCP is far more militant than he suggests in their expansionist aims - one need look no further than their intimidation operations in the South China Sea for confirmation of their intent and expansionist aims. he kinda glossed right over that uncomfortable fact.
The current Russian love affair with the CCP is OUR fault. We forced Russia into bed with the CCP, just pimped them right out to China for unfathomable (to me) reasons. WE created that monster, probably out of fear and ignorance.
During and immediately after the 1991 collapse, we had a golden opportunity to make a new friend out of Russia, and create an unbeatable alliance. I argued for that at the time, and was summarily ignored. My reasoning then was that formidable enemies can make equally formidable allies, if gifts handed to you are played right. Unfortunately, they were not played right then, and have not been played right ever since.
My best guess is that the little men behind the curtain, who then just as now actually pulled the lever and ran things, panicked when the Soviet Union collapsed. They no longer had a boogey man to use in rallying the US opinion, and diverting American attention from what they were doing behind that curtain. In their panic, they continued to target Russia as if it were still the enemy the Soviet Union was instead of making peace overtures that could have led to better things. We could have had a hand in forming today's Russia by assisting them during their time of need, but instead we completely fumbled that ball in our panicky state.
Flash forward a few decades, and here we are, STILL making the wrong calls in regards to Russia, and driving them straight into the arms of the Chinese CCP.
We have no one to blame there but ourselves... and still, we keep stumbling in the dark. I firmly believe we will do so until we stumble right off a cliff - the edge of it gets closer every minute as we stumble along.
We are our own worst enemy. Those panicky elements in our own government are far more dangerous to us, and to American freedoms, than any Russian has ever been, or can ever be.
.
And, for Russian speakers and CIA analysts, the same video, but with the view from the Kremlin:
It's propaganda of course, but as I've often said before, the very best propaganda is firmly rooted in fact and "truth".
In this case, most of the video is very, VERY firmly anchored in fact. Between 40 and 50 years ago, I embarked upon a self-education journey into Russian history and culture as a part of a self-imposed "know your enemy" program. Instead of relying on CIA "Fact Books" or official US government pronouncements on the issues, I thought it might be a better idea, if one was to gain a better understanding of his enemy, to gather the "facts" from the viewpoint of the Russians, It's one thing to know what someone's enemies have to say about them, and another thing altogether to know what they say about themselves, how they view themselves and their "causes". One gives a distorted view from the outside, the other a perhaps distorted view from the inside. I considered that it would be more valuable, from the standpoint of understanding one's enemy, to be able to get inside their own heads, to be able to evaluate and incorporate how they see themselves into any plan of action regarding them.
So, to that end, I gathered information from Russian sources, including "The Great Soviet Encyclopedia" and Russian expats as well as refugees from surrounding Soviet-influences countries, such as Poland, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Yugoslavia, etc. I was blessed in that endeavor by having actual contacts in those communities, having been raised among a melting pot of first and second generation eastern Europeans in northeastern Ohio until I was around 14.
The view I got of Russian history from those sources, including the refugees from Warsaw Pact satellite states of Russia, matches perfectly with Putin's assessment in the first 30 minutes or so of the video of Russian history.
That is why I said in the beginning of the Ukrainian war, and still say, that this amounts to an internal civil war that the US has no business poking it's nose into. The Ukraine has been a part of Russia, almost non-stop, since there has even BEEN a Russia.
In the Soviet Union, and perhaps even still now, Russia had a system of internal passports called "Voyennyy bilets". They were little red identity paper booklets similar to external passports that most nations have, giving a person's life story for ID purposes which the Russians used for things like internal travel and personal identity. In Afghanistan, they were routinely taken from the bodies of dead Russians as part of intelligence gathering. Some of them specified the soldiers were from the Ukrainian "CCP" ("SSR" in English, "Soviet Socialist Republic") which was the Soviet Union's version of American states. So, if Texans or Minnessotans can be thought of as ":Americans", then Ukrainians are also "Russians" in the same sense.
So, to my thinking, this Ukrainian war is just another civil war, an internal Russian matter to resolve, none of our business. That is based upon my own take on Russian history, which is in agreement in most particulars with Putin's assessment of Russian history as gathered from primaries actually involved at some point in the area, otherwise known as "natives".
I mean, if you wanted to know about American history, would you ask an American, or a KGB agent? Would you ask an American, or someone from the CCP in China? I just applied that principle to my - at the time - enemies.
That principle has not changed. it's just one of those timeless things.
So, for an American to understand the situation in the Ukraine, I personally think it would be wise to put yourself in their shoes, see what it would look like on the other foot.
Let's say the United States collapsed (as it appears to be headed for anyhow), and the states devolved into separate "republics" as happened in Russia by and large during the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union. How do you suppose "Americans" would feel if the Chinese CCP, for instance, started making a pass at The Republic of Texas or The Republic of Florida (logical, since they already have a foothold in Mexico and Cuba, and most of the Caribbean) INSIDE what was "American" territory for almost 300 years? Do you suppose the other American republics that were formerly a part of the United States would just sit on their hands and say "oh well - that's just the way the world works now!"? Somehow, I have my doubts... but that is exactly the position Russia is in regarding the Ukraine.
I differ with Putin, however, in his assessment of the matter of China. During Soviet days, and even before (and even AFTER, until very recently), Russia had had a "tense" relationship with an expansionist China, especially along the Russo-Chinese border he mentions. They've not always been as cozy as they are now like he suggests. Furthermore, the CCP is far more militant than he suggests in their expansionist aims - one need look no further than their intimidation operations in the South China Sea for confirmation of their intent and expansionist aims. he kinda glossed right over that uncomfortable fact.
The current Russian love affair with the CCP is OUR fault. We forced Russia into bed with the CCP, just pimped them right out to China for unfathomable (to me) reasons. WE created that monster, probably out of fear and ignorance.
During and immediately after the 1991 collapse, we had a golden opportunity to make a new friend out of Russia, and create an unbeatable alliance. I argued for that at the time, and was summarily ignored. My reasoning then was that formidable enemies can make equally formidable allies, if gifts handed to you are played right. Unfortunately, they were not played right then, and have not been played right ever since.
My best guess is that the little men behind the curtain, who then just as now actually pulled the lever and ran things, panicked when the Soviet Union collapsed. They no longer had a boogey man to use in rallying the US opinion, and diverting American attention from what they were doing behind that curtain. In their panic, they continued to target Russia as if it were still the enemy the Soviet Union was instead of making peace overtures that could have led to better things. We could have had a hand in forming today's Russia by assisting them during their time of need, but instead we completely fumbled that ball in our panicky state.
Flash forward a few decades, and here we are, STILL making the wrong calls in regards to Russia, and driving them straight into the arms of the Chinese CCP.
We have no one to blame there but ourselves... and still, we keep stumbling in the dark. I firmly believe we will do so until we stumble right off a cliff - the edge of it gets closer every minute as we stumble along.
We are our own worst enemy. Those panicky elements in our own government are far more dangerous to us, and to American freedoms, than any Russian has ever been, or can ever be.
.