Zakharova's Weekly Briefing--Selections

Very Long Read.

Yes, last week’s briefing was omitted as other events diminished its importance. Generally, the briefing’s official English transcript appears on the MFA’s English site 48 hours after its published in Russian. Here’s last week’s for those curious. As noted, the briefings have become much longer due to the extensive Ukraine report and others that are related, while the number and variety of questions asked has increased along with the average answer length; thus, the need for selections instead of providing the entire transcript due to length considerations. They aren’t always shortened afterwards, but I note that occasionally is done at the English site. The point being to get it hot off the press soon after its release. This week’s briefing again has a very long section on Ukraine that focuses on the noises being heard from the West of the intention to renege on providing monetary and arms support “for as long as it takes”—yet another worthless Western promise—along with related issues of current and historical significance. Other selections relate to Moldova, Bulgaria, Armenia, and what’s called “the West’s double standards with regard to the media. Within the selections is a link to an important paper in English written and published by the Russian MFA, “Regarding the Situation with the Glorification of Nazism and the Spread of Neo-Nazism and Other Practices That Contribute to Fuelling Contemporary Forms of Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance,” which will be of interest to historians and those concerned about the roots of contemporary problems. Now, on to the selections:

On the Ukrainian crisis

Ukrainian neo-Nazis continue to strike at residential buildings and social infrastructure facilities in Russian regions. For this purpose, long-range weapons supplied by the United States and NATO countries, including those with cluster munitions, are actively used. Every day there are reports of shelling of cities and villages of the DPR and LPR. Unfortunately, there are casualties and destruction. So, on December 2 of this year, the Armed Forces of Ukraine subjected a missile attack to Lysychansk (LPR), four civilians were injured. On December 3 of this year, the Armed Forces of Ukraine fired more than 30 shells at Donetsk, Gorlovka and Makiivka. As a result, six people were injured, including seriously wounded and a minor child. Yesterday, on December 5 of this year, the same settlements again came under fire from the Banderites. The buildings of the Donetsk Technical School of Professional Technologies, two schools and a kindergarten were damaged. This is the goal of the Kiev regime. The true task is to kill everything that is peaceful and exists in harmony. Everything that does not accept the destructive logic imposed on Ukrainians by NATO and the "collective West".

The Armed Forces of Ukraine do not stop shelling the territory of the Belgorod region. On December 4, they fired 66 shells at settlements in five municipalities.

The Kiev regime continues to attempt to carry out terrorist attacks on targets on the territory of Russia with the help of drones. On the night of December 5 this year, air defense forces shot down 22 drones and intercepted 13 more over Crimea and the Sea of Azov.

From crime to punishment. On the basis of evidence collected by the Investigative Committee of Russia, the courts of the Russian Federation continue to sentence Ukrainian neo-Nazis who have committed grave crimes against civilians.

Militant I. Taran was sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder and attempted murder of civilians in Mariupol.

Neo-Nazi from Azov Mikhail Rozhevetsky was sentenced to 24 years in prison. Following orders from his superiors to kill all freely moving near combat positions, including civilians given in violation of international law, he shot an innocent woman, believing that she was taking a pro-Russian position.

Ukrainian neo-Nazi M. Dyachuk was sentenced to the same term. He killed a civilian, believing that he was supporting a special military operation.

Work to collect evidence of war crimes committed by the militants of the Armed Forces of Ukraine continues. No one escapes responsibility.

Details of US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin's visit to Kiev on November 20 have appeared in the Ukrainian media. It is reported that during his meeting with the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine V.F. Zaluzhny, he allegedly demanded that the Americans supply Ukrainian militants with 17 million shells. To finance "the entry of the Armed Forces of Ukraine to the borders of Ukraine in 1991", V.F. Zaluzhny needs 350-400 billion dollars. It is not known to what extent such demands of Viktor Zaluzhny correspond to reality, but one thing is clear: Ukraine has turned into a giant "black hole" in which colossal material and human resources are burning.

The "black hole" is absolutely not a symbolic comparison, but a mechanism for distributing funds illegally and stealing them on a monstrous scale. No one understands where it all goes. Everyone accepts the given as an existing fact. Representatives of the relevant countries of the Middle East and North Africa are talking about this. It is a well-known fact that weapons supplied by the United States or other NATO countries "surface" in the Middle East. Moreover, it does not "pop up" sporadically, not by chance, and not as a planted. It is massively present there. The same weapons that were part of the supplies to the Kiev regime so that it would commit aggression against our country. Does no one in the Pentagon or the State Department know this? It can't be. Know. But they understand that they are participating in a colossal hoax, the result of which is the tragedy of millions of people. They know that they are involved in corruption schemes, how much money is returned, literally touching Ukrainian financial institutions, back to where they came from. They know how much equipment is written off as if for the needs of the Kiev regime and, in principle, does not arrive there. Either it unfolds before reaching the territory of Ukraine, or it is redistributed and resold there. Or it seems to be put "on the balance sheet", but in fact, it is "emptiness". And it has long been transferred or resold to other regions of the world.

We talked about this when the special military operation had just begun. And before that, they talked about all the corruption schemes between the "collective West" (primarily the United States and Britain, Brussels and other NATO countries) and the Kiev regime.

It is becoming more and more difficult for the West to maintain it every day from all points of view – financial, political, ideological. I would say moral, but the West has no morality (I mean the political regimes of these states). And from an ideological point of view, it becomes unbearable to explain to the population of their own countries what they have forgotten in Ukraine. The United States does not hide the fact that by the end of the year they will not have the funds to help the Kiev regime. On December 4 of this year, the head of the White House Office of Management and Budget Stephan Young openly admitted this, and President Joe Biden's National Security Advisor John Sullivan ironically remarked: "We simply do not have a magic pot of money from where we could get it to help Ukraine." It seemed to me that the U.S. printing press was the "magic pot" from which they always took this money.

Alarming signals for the Zelensky regime are coming from the European Union. There, due to a budget dispute, 50 billion euros for the needs of Kiev were threatened. At the same time, the Westerners themselves have repeatedly openly said that they do not know where exactly their aid ends up on the territory of Ukraine or does not reach it at all. In such circumstances, it is becoming increasingly difficult for them to explain to voters why tens of billions of dollars were wasted on the Zelensky regime, mired in blood and corruption.

Let's help them? It is not only the Zelensky regime that is mired in this bloody corruption, but also those who sponsor it. How could it be otherwise? Where would these corrupt officials in Kiev have their money from? For a long time, the country does not produce or trade anything except the lives of its citizens. For a long time, Ukraine has not been a paradise, let alone a potential place for investment. But at the same time, billions of dollars and euros are being sent there. Without this aid (in fact, financial flows) "to the world", there would have been no corruption in Ukraine long ago. But it is being fueled. When this NATO "brigade" accuses Vladimir Zelensky of corruption, we need to be consistent and go all the way and say that they are financing it.

NATO and EU "brigadiers" say that this money could be used for more worthy purposes in the social or medical spheres. Where did they find these spheres in Ukraine? Independent and focused on the citizens of Ukraine. Let us remind them that all medicine in recent decades (especially in the last ten years) has been fully integrated into the American system, not health care, but funding. Moreover, it was "crushed" and became part of the American military machine. Biological laboratories operating under the auspices of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine were biological laboratories of the US Pentagon.

It is ridiculous to talk about the social sphere in Ukraine. For many years, they have not paid benefits, pensions, salaries to their own citizens in the southeast of Ukraine. Perhaps they call this monstrous, bloody, violent mobilization, when people are stuffed into paddy wagons and taken away screaming, beaten to death with truncheons, at gunpoint and machine guns. Is it the social sphere? Is it community outreach? Is this a guaranteed ration for the citizens of Ukraine?

We have repeatedly said that the Kiev regime has lost the remnants of state independence and deprived Ukraine of any independence or sovereignty. And the domestic and foreign policy of the country is determined by the Anglo-Saxon curators.

It is not surprising that Kiev ignored December 1, a significant date for the modern history of the country, when it was 32 years since the All-Ukrainian referendum on the confirmation of the Act of Declaration of Independence of Ukraine, which was fateful for the former Ukrainian SSR. Why, you ask? All the words seem to be in place – "Act of Declaration of Independence of Ukraine". Why is it not necessary and uninteresting to such an extent that it is not even remembered? I had to forget. It was ordered not to remember the conditions under which independence was acquired. And what was left of it after the West got down to business.

Recall that during the plebiscite on December 1, 1991, the residents of the country confirmed the Act of Declaration of Independence of Ukraine of August 24, 1991, thereby recognizing the need for strict compliance with the Declaration on State Sovereignty of Ukraine of 1990, according to which the intention to become a permanently neutral state, not to take part in military blocs and to have a nuclear-free status was proclaimed. It is understandable why the date is not commemorated, and this historical fact is completely consigned to oblivion.

It is obvious that the Kiev regime has long put an end to the future of Ukraine as a sovereign state and set a course for its enslavement by transatlantic corporations and turning it into a colony of the West.

We have taken note of the monstrous news about the mobilisation of underage citizens of the country into the Armed Forces of Ukraine. They are not volunteers or prototypes of the "sons of the regiment." Nothing of the kind. This is the forced mobilization of underage citizens into the armed forces of Ukraine. The first group of the modern "Hitler Youth" in Ukrainian, consisting of orphaned teenagers, has already been trained at the Gaymadatskaya Sich reserve training center and sent to the disposal of the 103rd Territorial Defense Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

May I ask Vladimir Zelensky a question? Does he still remember his phrase "they are children"? These words should have been said not then, in relation to completely independent people, but now addressed to those who came up with this. Who decided to include underage orphans in the Armed Forces of Ukraine and immediately send them to certain death? This is where the phrase "they are children" would come in handy. Because "they're kids" really. It is convenient for them to "wash their brains", and then immediately send them to the graves, solemnly hoisting a zhovto-blakite banner over them. This is patriotism in the Kiev regime, liberal democracy prepared by the "collective West" for Ukraine.

Despite the fact that initially the children were allegedly promised to be kept in the rear areas of the Kharkiv region, there is already information about the first orphans killed on the battlefield. Where is everybody? Where is UNESCO, Ms Azoulay? They start "twitching" about everything. How so? What about civil society, public organizations, and electoral systems? Do you want to think about it, maybe even talk about how the Kiev regime in the 17st century has re-established a real Hitler Youth on the basis of neo-Nazi ideological attitudes, renewing and reincarnating this entire ideology? The director of the orphanage, from where one of the teenagers was taken, reported that her <>-year-old pupil died near the village of Novoselovskoye (LPR).

In its vicious desperation, Vladimir Zelensky's criminal regime has reached the extreme point of ferocity if it has already begun to send children to obvious death. This is all from there, from the Second World War (for us, the Great Patriotic War). This is the agony of the Third Reich in 1945, when women, the elderly, and now orphans are dying in the trenches in Ukraine. At the hands of the Kiev fascists, the extermination of the Ukrainian people is being carried out - hostilities are being carried out by Kiev to please the West to the last Ukrainian. This is no longer a figure of speech. This is not a symbolism, but a statement. The West decided to literally massacre the Ukrainian population. What about the "national question"? We have been told all the time that there is such an alignment of forces by nationality in the Kiev regime, that this is a guarantee of the non-reincarnation of Nazism, fascism, racism, etc. Literally to the extermination of the nation.

On November 24 of this year, the Government of Ukraine submitted to the Verkhovna Rada a draft law "On Amendments to Certain Laws of Ukraine Regarding the Consideration of the Expert Assessment of the Council of Europe and its Bodies on the Rights of National Minorities (Communities) in Certain Areas." What is this document about?

The developers do not hide the fact that they were forced to take this step by the hope of joining the EU. Recall that the requirement to bring Ukrainian legislation in line with European norms in the field of protecting the rights of national minorities was put forward to Kiev by the European Commission as one of the main conditions for the start of negotiations on EU membership.

A number of laws regulating language policy in Ukraine are supposed to be "adjusted" – the law on the state language, complete general secondary education, higher education, national minorities, etc. It is aimed, first of all, at expanding the rights and scope of application of the official languages of the EU countries (probably, you will think of Ukraine itself, its closest neighbours, which until recently became a single space). In particular, for speakers of these languages, school instruction is provided in their mother tongue for the entire period. Specialized secondary and higher education in the languages of the European Union is also allowed. Some concessions are supposed to be made in the field of advertising, book publishing and the media.

What about the Russian language, which is a means of natural communication for millions of citizens of this country? The following picture emerges here. For 5 years after the end of the "war", the provisions of the "Law on National Minorities" will not apply to it. It is not known how the situation will develop further. In any case, education in the Russian language will continue to be banned. There is nothing that distinguishes these steps by the European Union, the Kiev regime and all their curators from NATO, the United States, Britain and others from the actions of the Nazis to change humanity according to their own discretion and pattern. The re-education of children and people, the change up to the "breeding" of a new person, the formation of an entire nation in a new, completely different space (cultural, linguistic, educational, historical) from its natural environment.

This bill vividly highlights the real neo-Nazi essence of the Kiev regime, which is led by Western curators. The amendments are linguistic segregation and outright mockery of Ukrainian citizens. All this is beyond doubt, because there is not a single fact that can be adduced in support of such a thing.

The Russian language is not the language of a national minority. In addition to ethnic Russians, Ukrainians, Belarusians, Armenians, Jews, and many other nationalities speak it in Ukraine. Where is the entire international community? Everyone is silent. Representatives of the European Union, which are members of the OSCE, also remain silent. The OSCE is silent. In principle, the Council of Europe has no time for this. It would be quicker for them to "rewire" the people in Ukraine, to turn them into slaves. All of this is being introduced now. Why? In order for people to lose any orientation in space, to be lost to themselves, to become obedient conductors of the will of those who look at Ukraine as a "fat piece". They've always done that.

Although the bill is still under consideration and its final version is still unclear, one thing is for sure – they will not be able to destroy the Russian language. Despite the bans, people in Ukraine continue to communicate, watch movies, listen to songs and search for information on the Internet in Russian.

On December 4 of this year, Moscow hosted the international scientific and practical conference "Ukrainian Nazism in the 21st Century: Roots and Branches". It was attended by scientists and experts from a number of countries, including Belarus, Serbia, Italy and France. High Commissioner for Human Rights, Democracy and the Rule of Law and Director of the Department for Multilateral Cooperation on Human Rights Gennady Lukyantsev spoke on behalf of the Foreign Ministry.

The participants came to an unequivocal conclusion – in Ukraine we are dealing with fascism at the state level. Ukrainian Nazism is not a local phenomenon, but a problem of the whole world. There is a widespread spread and popularization. Nazism is literally the brother of racism. This is another reincarnation of the very logic of exceptionalism, domination and superiority. It has had different appearances over the centuries. Now here's this. Through the revival of Nazism, there is a return to the neo-colonial racist policies of the West.

That is why the special military operation continues. Literally every day we receive more and more evidence of its not just relevance, but correctness.

Planned transfer of F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine

NATO member states continue to intensively arm Ukraine. Next in line is the supply of F-16 tactical fighters to the Armed Forces of Ukraine. They have been talking about them for a long time, they have created a whole separate "coalition" of countries that will transfer aircraft to the Kiev regime and train Ukrainian pilots. Given that a significant part of Ukraine's airfield infrastructure has been destroyed, it is possible that these American fighters will be based outside the country - in Poland, Slovakia and Romania.

Thus, the North Atlantic Alliance is getting deeper and deeper into the Ukrainian conflict. And as we understand it, it is waging a hybrid war against our country under the slogan of "saving" Ukraine. At the same time, they agreed that their main goal is to prevent confrontation with Russia. That's funny!

In reality, the risks of a direct military clash between Russia and NATO are only increasing. For the Russian armed forces, fighter jets participating in the conflict on the side of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, no matter where they fly from, will be a legitimate target for destruction.

Foreign Ministry's report on glorification of Nazism and manifestations of neo-Nazism and racism

I would like to draw your attention to the fact that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation has prepared a regular report on the situation with the glorification of Nazism, the spread of neo-Nazism and other practices that contribute to fuelling contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance.

The document with a translation into English is posted on our website. The report has been prepared in the spirit of Russia's efforts to preserve the historical truth about the course and results of World War II.

With each passing year, the negative trends noted in the report, caused by blatant double standards and revanchist sentiments, are becoming more and more persistent. This year was no exception.

Previous campaigns to falsify history and distort the role of the USSR in ensuring victory over Nazism and creating a modern system of international relations not only received a powerful impetus, but began to be openly implanted in public discourse. The goals of these cynical actions to revise history are now openly named: to swap the aggressors who unleashed the largest war in the history of mankind and embodied the ideology of racial exclusivity, and the member state of the anti-Hitler coalition, which made a decisive contribution to the achievement of Victory.

Today, there are a significant number of states in which collaborators who helped the Nazis are literally honored as "fighters" for the "independence" of these countries, and in general, they are trying to reformat public opinion in the right way by all available means.

This year, the world witnessed the first public ovation of such a "figure" as it was in the Canadian Parliament. Radical nationalists and other extremists, who then stood side by side with the Nazis and have now become a standard (as they are called in the West) of "proper patriotism," are being actively involved in the fight against the Russian world and the Soviet memorial legacy. Now there is a "new normal" and a "right patriotism." The roles and tasks of such countries in the Euro-Atlantic concept of the "rules-based order" are clear. Russia is seeing more and more evidence that the roles played by the authorities of these states are detrimental to the interests of their own peoples.

In February 2022, the Russophobic activities of the "collective West" received an additional impetus and motives to justify it after the Russian Federation launched a special military operation to denazify and demilitarize Ukraine and protect the civilian population of Donbass. In practical terms, this resulted in total discrimination against Russians. In 2023, events continue to unfold according to the same scenario.

The identified trends only confirm the thesis advocated by Russia that racial discrimination and the glorification of Nazism pose a direct threat to the values of genuine democracy and the protection of human rights, and pose a serious challenge to international and regional security.

It is important that the vast majority of members of the international community share Russia's approaches to countering the glorification of Nazism. This is confirmed by the UN General Assembly resolution "Combating the glorification of Nazism, neo-Nazism and other practices that contribute to fuelling contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance", which Russia annually submits to the UN General Assembly together with a wide range of co-sponsors from all regions of the world. The provisions of the resolution have traditionally been used as a basis for the preparation of the present report.

Kaliningrad court recognises Nazi atrocities in East Prussia as genocide of the peoples of the USSR

On December 1 of this year, the Kaliningrad Regional Court recognized the crimes of the Nazis committed on the territory of East Prussia as genocide of the peoples of the USSR.

Here is what the court's decision says about it: "To recognize the established and newly revealed crimes committed by the German fascist invaders and their accomplices during the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945 against forcibly displaced Soviet civilians and prisoners of war involved in forced labor, as well as those who died and were killed in German captivity, on the territory of the Third Reich (Nazi Germany), including crimes, committed on the territory of East Prussia as part of the Third Reich (within the borders of the modern Kaliningrad region of the Russian Federation) <... > war crimes and crimes against humanity, <... > genocide of the national and ethnic groups that constituted the population of the USSR, the peoples of the Soviet Union."

Let me remind you that Germany's goals and tasks in the war against the USSR were: the destruction of the statehood of our country, the seizure of new territories with the simultaneous extermination of the population living there. All this was openly declared. Special documents and directives prescribed the total extermination of what they called the "defenders of the Soviet system," the use of so-called unpunished excessive violence against prisoners of war and civilians, and the organization of "mass mortality of Soviet citizens from starvation."

These people are now being glorified in Ukraine, where every year they are told that they were starved to death by the Soviet Union. This is not a rejection of the truth, but even worse, a perversion of it. They know the truth, they still remember the facts, but they deliberately do the opposite.

The territory of East Prussia was no exception to the general rule, despite the fact that by the time the Great Patriotic War began, it was part of Nazi Germany. Here, as well as throughout the territory of the Third Reich, a criminal plan was carried out to exploit Soviet prisoners of war and civilians deported from the occupied territory of the USSR in conditions incompatible with life with their subsequent extermination.

To achieve these goals, as early as September 1941, the German command issued an order "On the Treatment of Soviet Prisoners of War," which stated: "... the Bolshevik soldier lost all right to claim to be treated as an honest soldier under the Geneva Convention. Disobedience, active or passive resistance must be immediately and completely eliminated by means of weapons (bayonet, butt and firearm). In the case of Soviet prisoners of war, even for disciplinary reasons, arms must be resorted to with great determination. Prisoners of war who escape are to be shot at immediately, without a warning call. Warning shots should not be fired." It's a document. It was not written by a mad philosopher in a valley out of touch with reality. This is something that passed institutional checks and was adopted as a directive in the Third Reich. Doesn't that sound familiar? This is exactly how their successors, who also glorified them, the neo-Nazis of the Kiev regime, are acting now.

At least 47 concentration camps operated on the territory of East Prussia to carry out criminal acts. One of the largest in the Kaliningrad region was the Stalag-1A. A total of more than 250,000 prisoners of war passed through this camp, which functioned until January 1945, including about 90,000 Soviet, 80,000 French, 40,000 Polish, 23,000 Belgian, 12,000 Italian, and 7,000 British. Soviet prisoners were accommodated in the camp, as it was noted, "extremely crowded." So, for example, in one barrack, instead of 100 people, up to half a thousand or more were placed. The unsanitary condition of the barracks in the area of our prisoners of war was considered by the Germans to be the rule. It is not surprising that the mass mortality of Soviet prisoners of war in the camp was due to the fact that they were kept in much worse conditions than prisoners of war in Western countries. Doesn't that sound like anything again?

This logic is still present today. In the West, they say that they need to "cancel" everything related to Russia. EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell wished that only the ideology of the "beautiful garden" would shine forth. From the point of view of Westerners, only a "beautiful garden" needs everything – water, food, medicines. Everyone else doesn't need it, or secondarily, from leftovers.

Wasn't that the case during the pandemic? Remember these cheats arranged by the Westerners with our vaccines. Russia was the first to develop it and offer it to everyone as an example of interaction and cooperation for joint development, testing, production, including as humanitarian aid. So what? Our vaccine was not even allowed to be certified. They staged a real bacchanalia at the sites of international organizations and within the framework of the WHO. Who did it? These are the same Westerners who could not allow the world to use the scientific achievements of those whom they have historically considered "second-class" and "labeled." At that time, during the Second World War (for us, the Great Patriotic War), it was marked with the mark "OST", now it is marked as soon as it is marked. The news of our media on Western platforms and social networks comes out with a "yellow" mark, specially designed so that they know that this is not "such news" as they create, but other, "dangerous" news. The prisoners of this camp were liberated on February 10, 1945 by the advancing units of the 28th Army of the 3rd Belorussian Front.

The facts of ill-treatment of Soviet prisoners of war, including their executions in the Stalag-1A concentration camp, were confirmed during the inspection of the Investigative Committee of Russia in the Kaliningrad region.

The achievement of Nazi Germany's goals in the war against the USSR, including on the territory of East Prussia, was ensured by the implementation of another principle: the inhabitants of the occupied territory should become the resource base of the Nazi army, providing it with everything necessary to continue the war. Doesn't that sound familiar? In the same way, "Ukrainian politicians" are now treating the citizens of Ukraine, but in fact they are a regime installed by the West. For them, this is a resource base – people, Ukrainian lands, grain, territories left over from the Soviet era, from the help of our country, technological infrastructure facilities.

This was expressed in the barbaric use of forced labor of forcibly displaced Soviet citizens from the territory of the USSR to East Prussia in the construction of German defensive lines, in industrial production, and in the provision of domestic services to the German population of East Prussia.

Isn't that the case in the West now? In many countries of the European Union, migrants are not treated as a resource base? Or does anyone have the illusion that they are accepted as equals? Do they give the same rights as indigenous citizens? Of course not. They are needed as free, disenfranchised labor in those countries that have degenerated by propagandizing the LGBT ideology that has fallen under the appropriate qualification. Someone has to work. For them, the resource base is the same as that of the Third Reich. Disenfranchised, destitute and humiliated people were forced to leave their countries and regions. The Middle East and North Africa are an example of this. Now here's Ukraine. They believed that they were drawn to the light – they came to the EU countries in an attempt to survive. In fact, they are the very resource base. It is unclear how all this will end, given the processes taking place in the countries of the European Union.

From the very beginning of the war, the Nazis systematically transferred our citizens to Germany in order to make up for the shortage of labor in industry and agriculture. They were considered to be of an inferior race and were subjected to the most severe discrimination. On their work uniforms, they wore a sign with the inscription "OST," which was a marker of "racial inferiority." At the same time, they were kept in terrible living conditions, starved, denied medical care and severely punished for any minor offences.

Moreover, the German fascist invaders enslaved the civilian population of the USSR on the basis of trade relations among the inhabitants of East Prussia, in the course of which our citizens acted as "commodities."

On the eve of the offensive of the Red Army troops in January 1945, the Nazi punishers, not wanting to expose their own criminal activities, began mass murders of all Soviet citizens - prisoners of camps located in East Prussia within the borders of the modern Kaliningrad region.

In court hearings, materials testifying to the deportation of civilians and prisoners of war from the occupied Soviet territories for forced labor in the Third Reich and subsequent extermination were examined. Thus, from the testimony of experts and documents submitted to the court, it follows that the total number of those involved in forced labor in metallurgy, agriculture, mining, chemical, construction and transport industries exceeded 4.7 million Soviet civilian workers and 3.3 million prisoners of war from the ranks of the Red Army and Navy.

Then these same NATO countries tell us about their technological superiority? That they are better than everyone else, smarter simply by right of blood? Because they have been oppressing all their lives and have done it in various forms – in the form of slavery, slave trade, exploitation in colonies and semi-colonies, and then in the form of pleasing prisoners of war and ordinary civilians to work for themselves in the middle of the 20th century.

At the same time, more than 670,000 Soviet citizens and prisoners of war were held on the territory of East Prussia within the modern borders of the Kaliningrad region, of which at least 211,000 were involved in forced labor and more than 114,000 were destroyed in gas chambers, shot or became victims of other inhuman methods of death.

The Nazis burned the bodies of the victims, exhausted by forced, back-breaking labor and hunger, in crematoria, and their ashes were used to fertilize agricultural land. Cases have been recorded when decapitated or shot Soviet citizens were used as raw materials for the production of soap, leather goods or interior items. Haberdashery and design made of human flesh. That was the case.

The decision of the Kaliningrad Regional Court once again confirms the scale of the crimes committed during the Great Patriotic War, based on the criminal ideas of misanthropy and racial superiority. We will continue to tell you about this on a regular basis based on facts and documents. "No one is forgotten, nothing is forgotten."

On the 35th anniversary of the earthquake in Spitak

On December 7, 1988, one of the greatest disasters in the history of ancient Armenia befell the land of ancient Armenia – a terrible, 10-point earthquake with an epicenter in the city of Spitak. It destroyed many settlements and took the lives of several tens of thousands of citizens. According to various estimates, as a result of the disaster, 9 million square meters of living space were destroyed, which amounted to about 20% of the total housing stock of the republic; More than half a million people were left homeless.

In a moment of terrible grief, the entire vast country and friends from abroad, including the Armenian Diaspora, came to the aid of the Armenian people. The Commission for the Elimination of the Consequences of the Disaster was headed by the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the USSR N.I. Ryzhkov. Almost 100 highly qualified doctors, headed by the Minister of Health of the USSR E.I. Chazov, flew out of Moscow. The highest professionalism and heroism were demonstrated by 20 thousand soldiers and officers, as well as volunteers, who worked to clear the rubble. Humanitarian aid came from all the Union republics, and 45,000 builders arrived.

Russia will always remember that catastrophe, perceiving this misfortune of the Armenian people as its own. The memory of the noble sacrificial impulse of the entire Soviet people is preserved. This is also the case in Armenia. In the neighboring city of Gyumri, a remarkable monument was erected by the Russian sculptor of Armenian origin F.M. Soghoyan with a carved inscription: "To the innocent victims, to the merciful hearts."

These days, the branch of the Russian Center for Science and Culture in Gyumri is holding a traditional international conference with the participation of architects-builders, specialists in the field of construction in earthquake-prone zones, urbanists on the topical topic "Spitak earthquake: a look from the past to the future". Among the goals of the forum is to identify the most problematic points in the urban environment and development of the city of Gyumri and the formation of recommendations for their solution, taking into account the remaining fairly high seismic indicators of activity in this region of Armenia.

One of Spitak's lessons is the realization of the inviolability of the centuries-old friendship of the Russian and Armenian peoples, experienced by various adversities. No matter how the political situation develops, our fraternal unity will overcome any difficulties, because it is time-tested.

Question: NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that the alliance will support Ukraine even despite the position of some countries. How would you comment on this?

Maria Zakharova: The NATO Secretary General and any other head of the secretariat of an international organization should be based on a collegial opinion, which is formed on an equal basis. Countries are discussing and expressing their points of view. Here, it's the opposite. So on whose behalf is Jens Stoltenberg speaking?

We know how candidates for the post of NATO Secretary General are selected and approved by whom. The main actor is the United States. These are their creatures. The Secretary General himself is not an independent figure. He is "besieged" by his deputies, who represent, first of all, Washington. They do not lead the organization, but they play a leading role in it. They are always the "heavyweights" of American foreign policy, the military-diplomatic sphere. They play the role not of "gray" but of "bright" cardinals within the bloc.

Despite the fact that we understand how everything works, it is necessary to speak on the basis of a consolidated opinion. I don't remember that there was a discussion within the alliance about what to do next with the Anglo-Saxon project. This is not a project of all NATO countries. Washington is using the bloc as a coordinator to connect the resources of member states to the hybrid war against Russia at the hands of the Kyiv regime.

On whose behalf is Jens Stoltenberg speaking? If it is from the United States, then it should be added that he is doing this on the instructions of his deputy, an American, or on instructions directly from Washington. This "game" can't last that long. Everyone understands who is behind whom and what roles they play. It's the same story with the European Union and the European Commission. There are so many speakers and everyone says different things. But the main thing is that no one is starting from a common platform developed by countries. "Some to the forest, some to firewood." Sometimes they need to diversify their views, sometimes it happens suddenly because of ignorance and misunderstanding of the situation. This goes beyond reason.

The trend set by Washington (the current regime in the White House) is obvious. They do not hide the fact that they need to step up their efforts to counter our country. They demand money and authority. Everything is not enough for them, they need more. Why? Because they put their world reputation on the line. America is held hostage by the ambitions of the liberal Democratic Party of the United States. What now? The country's presidential election is at stake in a year. We need to demonstrate something. That is why Jens Stoltenberg is being forced to make such statements, as if to show the "cohesion" of NATO's ranks. It was never there, just stick discipline. Within the bloc in recent decades, no one has perceived anyone as equals.

The North Atlantic Alliance is not about democracy, but about rigid bloc not even discipline, but dictatorship. This implies unconditional compliance with directives from Washington. Are the member states not armed and unable to help financially? So, they require generators, blankets, food. Carry all that is left. Promise you'll bring more. If you don't have that, then share the intelligence. Or put not one flag of Ukraine on the table, but two. I'm not exaggerating, it's all up to that point. Behind this is a powerful PR campaign – structures that need to maintain the effectiveness of their efforts. They work off colossal money. It is important for NATO to involve everyone in support of the Anglo-Saxon project.

That's how you should treat it. On the one hand, it is an aggressive policy. We understand that the alliance is a tool used by the United States and Great Britain to achieve the "defeat" of our country. They will do their best. On the other hand, it is part of the information and political campaign, because it does not reflect the opinion of the peoples of the countries that are part of the bloc. No one asks them.

NATO member states have exhausted their stocks of weapons, their financial capabilities are at zero, and socio-economic tensions are growing due to exorbitant (in fact, criminal) spending on the maintenance of the Kiev regime. None of that counts. We need a permanent "note" in support of the course pursued by the United States.

Question: Last week, the public and media space of Moldova received a wide response to the authorities' refusal to pay military honours to Great Patriotic War veteran and holder of the highest Moldovan state decoration Pavel Gladkov. Can you comment on this?

Maria Zakharova: Do you remember the fairy tale "The Nightingale" by H.C. Andersen? When the princess found out that the rose and the nightingale were real, she said, "Phew! They're real." In words, they are all for anti-fascism, condemnation of Adolf Hitler, against the Third Reich. When they see real fighters against fascism, Nazism, etc., they also say "phew, they are real" and applaud neo-Nazis. True, they say that they are not neo-Nazis, but only those who hate Russia. This is how it is explained to us by those who profess a similar logic – the "collective West".

Maia Sandu was appointed by them. She was brought to power on purpose to hate our country. Its main task is to teach people who have never hated Russians or others to hate Russia and its people. It doesn't work out well, because people in Moldova know its value. The price of M.G. Sandu is a Romanian passport.

Guards Colonel P.V. Gladkov was a participant in the battles of Stalingrad and Kursk, a holder of three Orders of the Great Patriotic War and the Order of the Red Star. He died in Chisinau at the age of 103. We express our sincere condolences to his family and friends.

The farewell ceremony for him on November 30 of this year was truly popular. Representatives of veteran organizations, public and political associations, the diplomatic corps, caring residents of Moldova came, who paid tribute to the memory and respect of his feat of arms.

There was not a single representative of the Moldovan leadership among them, despite the fact that Pavel Gladkov, as a holder of the Order of the Republic, Moldova's highest state award, was scheduled to undergo a mourning ceremony at the Central House of the National Army. His relatives were denied. And if Yanka had died, Maria Sandu would have buried him for the second time, after Canada. I would ask you to do it in order to curry favor and "cave in". The authorities also ignored the request for a salute team.

The internal and clearly manifested resistance of the people of Moldova to what is being imposed on them inspires sincere respect. We see how many people are deceived because they are happy to do so. Someone is being subtly deceived. But I am amazed by the Moldovan brothers and sisters who do not allow this to happen to them. This is a lesson to everyone, including us, on how it is possible and necessary to resist boundless lies and distorted historical pseudo-reality. How can and should we fight not for ourselves, but for our children, for the future generation?

The current Moldovan leadership (although it is a real regime) has its own "heroes". Everyone remembers how in 2018, Maria Sandu, then chairwoman of the Action and Solidarity Party, said on television that she considered the Romanian dictator, Marshal Antonescu, "a historical figure about whom both good and bad can be said."

These facts clearly confirm that the current authorities of the Republic are conducting an open attack on the memory of the Great Patriotic War, trying to rewrite history, contributing to the glorification of the Romanian Nazis, and taking away the last thing from the people of Moldova – the language.

Fortunately, the citizens of the country know their history, they are strong in spirit, they remember the Great Patriotic War from the stories of their relatives, some read books that have not yet been banned there. They remember the atrocities of the Nazis and the heroic battles of the Red Army for the liberation of their native land, and honour the heroic deeds of the heroes who shed their blood and gave their lives for Victory.

Such as P.V. Gladkov. May his memory be blessed!

Question: How would you comment on media reports that British diplomats are preparing to "put pressure on Kiev to sit down at the negotiating table" with Moscow?

Maria Zakharova: I have no idea what kind of negotiating table we are talking about, given that it was the British authorities who knocked it out of the hands of Kiev negotiators in 2022.

It is difficult to comment on some "leaks" without giving specific names. Maybe it will be easier if this information has an author in the form of a speaker or an unofficial person. But the position of the UK and the US is obvious. This is a ban on the Kiev regime to negotiate, enshrining this at the legislative level and using it to fight Russia. I don't know where they're coming from. I haven't seen anyone who has publicly confirmed this. Perhaps the British authorities are trying to prove themselves or pretend that they are "peacekeepers". But in order for such an ideology not even to triumph, but at least to have the right to exist, it is necessary to talk about it openly and confirm it with deeds. So far, the deeds have confirmed the opposite: a ban and all sorts of tricks to dissuade the Kiev regime (during this time) from negotiating with Russia.

We can see London's official actions. They are to increase the supply of weapons to the Kiev regime, to impose anti-Russian sanctions, to force others to accept sanctions "packages", to participate in every possible way in the persecution of our citizens in all spheres, in the campaign to "cancel" Russia and our culture.

Question: The Washington Post claims that the plans for the summer offensive of the Armed Forces of Ukraine were drawn up by the US and British militaries, including Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin. Can these actions be considered acts of war against Russia? For example, US Armed Forces Colonel Laury Wilkerson called NATO an act of aggression (an act of war) against Russia and its allies on the air of the Dialogue Works YouTube channel. He spoke about providing the Armed Forces of Ukraine with data to strike at Russian facilities using reconnaissance aircraft of NATO countries.

Maria Zakharova: I hope that you are quoting the US representatives not because you do not trust us, but as additional confirmation.

We have repeatedly said that the targets for the Armed Forces of Ukraine to strike with Western-made missiles are coordinated with representatives of NATO countries, who provide the Kiev regime with the appropriate coordinates. In fact, the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the Kiev regime are executors of the will of states, primarily the United States and Great Britain, which act as tipsters. This is not a symbolic image, but a specialized term.

At the same time, not only air reconnaissance means are involved, but also the space group of the alliance countries. Ukrainian officials, in turn, have repeatedly acknowledged that all their actions are carried out with the approval and support of the United States and other NATO countries. There is no doubt that the plans for a "counter-offensive" or a "counter-attack" (I don't know what they call their monstrous failure) were not developed in Kiev. The Kiev regime has neither the ability nor the potential in the future to create infrastructural, military and strategic capabilities to conduct such military operations on its own. They have no material base, no money, nothing. Everything is given exclusively by the West.

The Washington Post wrote back in February of this year that the Ukrainian military strikes and uses precision guidance systems solely on the basis of coordinates that they receive from the Americans. I quote the American media not because I don't have information from our military, but because even they write about it as an obvious fact.

As for whether such facts can be considered an act of war or aggression. How much can we say that the United States, Great Britain and NATO as a whole, as a structure coordinated by them, are waging a hybrid war against our country at the hands of the Kiev regime. This formulation was pronounced, broken down into its components, and arguments were put under it at all levels: the President, the Ministers of Defence and Foreign Affairs, the legislature, the Federation Council, and the State Duma. "On the spot", military correspondents testify that on the "other side" not only Ukrainian and Russian speech, but already "primacy" English, German and other languages of NATO member countries are encountered. This is an obvious thing. We have been talking about this for a long time at all levels with facts in hand.

It is the West, Washington and London, using the alliance as a "collector", that supply the Kiev regime with weapons. Ukrainians are required to continue hostilities.

All that NATO members, including Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, say that their main task is to prevent a direct clash is hypocrisy, a "bead game" and a "charade" to divert attention. In order to whitewash the regimes that are members of NATO as states in front of their voters, saying that they have nothing to do with it, that they are not participants. Like, they are just helping the Kiev regime, etc.

In reality, the North Atlantic Alliance and Washington are behind every step of the Kiev regime. Their true goal is to achieve Russia's "strategic defeat" "on the battlefield." These plans are not destined to come true. It wasn't, it's not, and it won't be. They know how to harm, but they can't defeat us.

Question: What were the complaints against you by the Bulgarian authorities when they did not allow you to use the country's airspace? And how did you manage to get an overflight permit from the Greek authorities?

Maria Zakharova: Are you asking what the claims were? I was sanctioned by the European Union with the following wording: "for facilitating the deployment of Russian troops on the territory of Ukraine." This is ridiculous in principle, but it is even funnier that the announcement of the imposition of sanctions was made before the start of the special military operation. This means that it was developed a long time ago. After all, it must be coordinated, worked out, etc. I began to receive the first "messages" that they plan to include me in the sanctions list through various channels at the end of 2021. I told him. This is absurd, illogical, false, untrue. But in the West, no one pays attention to this anymore. Half of it is not voiced, and the other half is distorted.

Let's go back to the Bulgarian authorities. They couldn't explain what they had done. They said that I was on the sanctions list of the European Union. However, the EU Council Sanctions Regulation No. 214/145/CFSP on personal restrictions allows EU member states to exceptionally allow even sanctioned persons to enter the EU, if it is necessary for their participation in international events through the OSCE.

They are not acting against me specifically or our country as a whole, but against themselves. They show their slumber, wild Russophobia and terrible nationalism. Who Makes It? This is done by those who are the conductors of the Western line in the Bulgarian power structures. They are not acting in the interests of the people of that country. They can't even explain to their own citizens what they did, as well as EU officials, including the European Commission. They didn't even provide links to this document. This is absurd.

As you know, Greece gave permission for the overflight of the Russian aircraft. Apparently, diplomats in Athens are more versed in the documents adopted by the EU Council than in Bulgaria.

Question: Stephen Young and other US administration officials have often said lately that Washington is running out of time and money to help Ukraine. The administration is pressuring Congress to pass a package of new funding as soon as possible. Do you think they will run out of money or will they still find it to continue the war? How can all this affect the NWO?

Maria Zakharova: In no way do I claim to help Joe Biden's regime find funds to support the Nazi regime in Kiev. It seems to me that if they reach a dead end and nothing works out with Congress, they could sell Biden's computer or phone. I think they would have helped out fantastic funds. It would be such a wonderful fundraising. You have to admit that many people would pay well. I don't think they should discount this option.

Question: The Israeli Cabinet has decided to ban the broadcasting of the Al-Mayadeen network in Arabic, Spanish and English, and this model is being used by the West against the Russian media. Also recently, as a result of an attack by the Israeli armed forces in southern Lebanon, three journalists of our TV channel were killed in the line of duty. We at Al-Mayadeen consider this to be a preparation for the physical liquidation of the broadcasting station. What should be the reaction to such an approach, which violates all laws and regulations?

Maria Zakharova: I will divide your question into several parts.

First of all, you made a comparison with the actions of the West against the Russian media. Unfortunately, I can't agree. In my opinion, the situations are different. With all due respect to your media and journalists, we are talking about many years of systematic harassment and multifaceted banishment of Russian media outlets and journalists, as well as all those who interacted with them. This includes everything from segregation on the Internet to physical coercion in the form of non-response to the murders of our journalists or encouraging the relevant regimes to eliminate Russian media. This has been happening for many years, despite the fact that Russia as a state has literally flooded international institutions with information on this matter with detailed descriptions, facts and evidence. In my opinion, as far as the Russian media are concerned, this is an absolutely unprecedented story. When the Third Reich eradicated undesirable media and threw them into dungeons, they did it to themselves in the first place. Then, having attacked, they did it against everyone. This is a time of peace, but the whole set of actions and wars is being applied: from harassment of journalists to their physical elimination. To be honest, I don't know anything like this in the world in recent history and I don't remember it.

Secondly, the situation with ensuring the safety of journalists in the zone of escalation of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict is catastrophic. According to various sources, from forty to fifty media representatives have already died. And that's in two months. Again, it is unprecedented that journalists are not just killed en masse for some natural reasons in the conflict zone, but are killed on purpose. This evidence also exists. I don't know of any examples where there were so many casualties in such a short period of time. The outbreak of armed confrontation has highlighted the complete dysfunction of the media protection mechanisms that were created for such situations. I remember how it was Western countries that initiated the development of a large number of resolutions, statements, conventions protecting the media and journalists in a conflict or combat zone. They came up with various legal combinations and tools for implementing these documents. It is the countries that promoted all this at international organisations that are now silent and do absolutely nothing to at least express sympathy or make a statement to prevent such a scenario. The most surprising thing is that it is not only the region's media that suffer, but also the Western or Western media as institutions, or people interacting with and affiliated with Western media. And despite this, we see absolutely nothing. This is not just a double standard, but the destruction of any standardization in this area. This is a shameful case, which, in my opinion, should become an anti-example of how a state can behave. Somewhere in silence, on the sidelines, behind the tribunes of international organisations, to call for an increase in the level of protection for journalists, and when journalists from their own countries are killed, to do absolutely nothing, not even to express words of sympathy.

In this case, the warring parties do not actually take into account all the obligations and principles that have been developed over the years, which are designed to guarantee safe conditions for the work of media representatives. The case is not limited to mutual accusations, blocking of broadcasting and other obstacles in activities. Journalists are killed there almost every day, along with civilians on both sides, doctors, rescuers, and employees of international organizations. They are dying en masse.

We believe that the only way to stop this spiral of violence and find a long-term and sustainable peaceful solution to this protracted and brutal confrontation is through the faithful implementation by all interested parties of the agreements previously reached and enshrined in the relevant UN Security Council resolutions, which are based on the two-state formula.

Question: How would you characterize Russia's relations with Western countries today – is it the Cold War or perhaps there is some other definition?

Maria Zakharova: We have already described it. I wonder why you don't actively use it. This is a hybrid war of the West against Russia at the hands of the Kiev regime. This is a clear definition. You don't need to come up with anything else. There is no Russian-Ukrainian war or confrontation. There is the use of Ukraine by the West as a tool to inflict a "strategic defeat" on Russia. By and large, we call it a hybrid war against our country.

Why hybrid? Because it is conducted through another state by political opportunities and figures whom the West has brought to the territory of this state in advance, under the flag of another country. This includes the entire range of trade wars that have already begun against Russia long before that, as well as information aggression against our country, the use of all the latest technologies to exert information and psychological pressure on Russians. These include cyber attacks, calls from the territory of Ukraine under the guise of representatives of our law enforcement agencies or the banking sector, or related to the mining of civilian infrastructure (which has been repeatedly discussed), and the use of financial institutions in order to make us aware of the maximum difficulties in relations with the whole world in terms of payments, payments, and the creation of the impossibility of developing entire areas within the country by blocking cooperation in the technological sphere. scientific fields. This is really a hybrid war that the West unleashed against our country through the hands of the Kiev regime.

Question: The Renaissance Party, which is an opposition party in Moldova, said on its Telegram channel that the idea of uniting the republic with Romania is being planted against the will of the people and is the embodiment of the "impudence of the current government," which should have already "begun to respect" the statehood of its country. In your opinion, how realistic are the chances of unification of Romania and Moldova today?

Maria Zakharova: Given that the regime of Maia Sandu is imposing on the Moldovan people the agenda of unification with Romania, people can rightly ask that since this is on the agenda of the regime of Maia Sandu, is it possible to unite with Romania on Moldova's terms and call it Moldova?

If this seems quite revolutionary to you, let me remind you of a historical fact. Moldovan statehood is much older than Romanian statehood. It dates back to the middle of the 14th century, as does the Moldavian language and script, which was originally based on the Cyrillic alphabet.

I am convinced that the citizens of Moldova remember the history of their country, strive to preserve their native language and culture, and are interested in the further development of its statehood.

The democratic process is based on the principle of representation of the people and the realization of the aspirations and interests of the country's population, which delegates to the authorities the promotion of its goals and objectives. What is Maia Sandu doing? Quite the opposite. The people want one thing, she does another. It is a fact that the regime of Maia Sandu has not brought democracy to Moldova, but has reduced it. But I think it's a temporary story. Because it can't go on for long.

It is to be hoped that the current leadership will adhere to these simple principles of democracy and common sense. But, unfortunately, with all their steps and actions, they prove the opposite.

Question: Vladimir Putin described today's battle for sovereignty. He said it was of a "national liberation nature." Is this Russia's official position? For more than 10 years, the national liberation movement has been asked the question that we would now like to address to the Foreign Ministry: from whom is our country being liberated?

Answer: Of course. How could it be otherwise. We are talking about this in the context of our country and the whole world.

Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has been talking about de-dolarisation as the liberation from the yoke of a system that is not used for its intended purpose. No one was against using it as a financial instrument on an equal footing, on the basis of law and legality. And no one wants to participate in this as an instrument of influencing the domestic situation, as well as an element of trade wars.

Most countries in the world are well aware of this. This applies both to our country and to the world's majority. Involvement in the global information space first took place under the flags of globalization, and then it turned out that they are present in our country with their media, resources, and online opportunities. And we can't be there. They began to block us, harass our journalists, and shut down our broadcasting. This is also oppressive. Literally, enslavement.

Do I need to give more examples? They have created a bridgehead on the territory of Ukraine and are undermining the situation in other countries, our neighbours, with whom we have historically had good relations in all spheres. What is this, if not an attempt to put us in direct dependence? Westerners have understood that we have our own policy, course in the economy, domestic and foreign policy, national interests, financial and energy strategy, that we are gaining authority in the world more and more by truly cooperating, and not by increasing budgets and at the same time threatening the whole world.

They decided to act the way they did. I am talking about the "collective West" now. Therefore, for us now, this is a national liberation struggle. But it is characteristic and inherent not only to us. Read and watch the statements of representatives of the African continent, Asia, and Latin America. They're all talking about it. We are at the forefront of this liberation struggle.

That very multipolarity is a manifestation of the liberation struggle of the whole world for the right to equal treatment, for equality, for national dignity, which has been trampled upon, and in some places there have been attempts to destroy it for centuries.

New centers of development and sovereign decision-making are emerging. Countries put their national interests at the forefront, throw off the yoke of the influence of monopolies, fight for the right to pursue an independent foreign policy, and support the democratization of international relations. They stand for the equal, fair use of our planet's resources, so that they are used by everyone, by all of humanity, and not only by the Western sick minority, who use this as a factor not so much of their own development, but of the enslavement of others. This leads to their own degradation.

To reiterate, we are at the forefront of this liberation struggle. We are open to honest partnership with all those who are guided by the principles of equality and mutual respect in international affairs. Together with like-minded countries, we are reducing dependence on Western currencies, switching to alternative mechanisms for foreign economic settlements, and working on the formation of new international transport corridors and production and supply chains.

We will continue to fight for the truth, for justice. This is not an attempt to make all of humanity happy in one day or one year and "plant" one's sense of justice. Under no circumstances has anyone ever proclaimed such a thing. Lofty objectives should be set as goals and high ideals should be set as a standard. The world should strive for greater justice, not encourage hegemony, despotism, exploitation, theft, deceit, etc. Yes, it will not be easy, but there is simply no other way. Otherwise, back to the days of the slave trade.

Question: Could you please specify from whom exactly our country is being freed?

Maria Zakharova: I just did.

From the ideological, political, financial oppression and dependence of those who, for some reason, historically initially placed themselves above the rest. Call it world imperialism, the "collective West." Sometimes they call themselves something, or we call them. Historically, they have manifested themselves in this capacity.

Countries and regimes that consider themselves to be better, "superior" to others, and give themselves, without any right over it, the authority to segregate people, to take away resources, to destroy entire countries and peoples. That's what it is. Historically, it has had different names and manifested itself in different ways. The meaning is the same. I believe that no one before him has done more clearly than EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell, and it is unlikely that anyone will succeed after him. We are against the philosophy that divides the world into a "beautiful garden" that allows everything and a "wild jungle" that should work in favor of a "beautiful garden." I don't think he knew what he was saying. But he said it. And it is this yoke, ideology, yoke that we are going to throw off. In many ways, we have already succeeded.

The last two Q&As have an importance all their own. Maria could’ve pointed at the two Joint Declarations by Russia and China that provide a far more expansive answer which explain the goal is to provide/create an alternative to the Unipolar Dictatorship of the Outlaw US Empire, which is actively involved in yet another Genocide. Escobar posted a very appropriate political cartoon at his Telegram I can only link to, the symbolism being easy to understand for those who know the origin of that statue, and is an example of what the Global Majority seeks liberation from. As greater awareness of what the Nazis planned and did during WW2 grows globally, the main victims of the Holocaust must be recognized as Slavs, not Jews, and the latter group cannot be allowed to be the sole victims and thus be allowed “ownership” of that crime any longer, particularly in light of the Genocide they’re committing against Palestinians.

*
*
*
Like what you’ve been reading at Karlof1’s Substack? Then please consider subscribing and choosing to make a monthly/yearly pledge to enable my efforts in this challenging realm. Thank You!