How the international media covered the Russo-Ukrainian war, August 18

CNN writes about the Kremlinʼs new disinformation tactics using the example of the story of Kherson resident Ihor Kurayan, whose social networks were used by the occupiers to promote Kremlin propaganda. Before the full-scale war, 55-year-old Kurayan actively used social networks, where he shared posts about gardening because he grew all kinds of exotic plants in his garden. On February 25, Ihor joined the cityʼs Territorial Defense, and after the occupation, already in April, he was kidnapped by the Russians. Shortly after the abduction, strange posts began to appear on Kurayanʼs Instagram and Facebook pages, as well as on the allegedly newly created TikTok page. They were not at all similar to those that Ihor would have made. The occupiers began filming videos with Kurayan, where he said that there was no point in resisting, called on the TD fighters to surrender their weapons, etc. These videos were also used for propaganda on Russian television. After about a month of captivity, Kurayan was released and he spoke about the torture and attempts to lure him to the side of the invaders. He was even offered to become the fictitious mayor of Kherson. Ihor was a valuable prey because he had a patriotic attitude and the Russians wanted to break him to show how the patriot had "grown up". This case is not an isolated one, as the Kremlinʼs propaganda machine localized efforts to convince the local population in the occupied territories that Ukraine has abandoned them, says Mykola Balaban, deputy head of the Ukrainian governmentʼs Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security. This new tactic, although more expensive, is used because it is becoming increasingly difficult for Russia to attract bot farms. CNN writes that it has already been possible to identify at least five Ukrainians whose accounts were used similarly.

Several high-ranking US diplomats and officials have published an open letter to The Hill urging the White House to immediately step up support for Ukraine before itʼs too late. The authors note the success of the US in rallying allies around aid to Ukraine and providing military support to the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and at the same time write that America has failed to develop a strategic narrative for long-term NATO involvement. US aid to Ukraine is currently sufficient to maintain the status quo, but not to dislodge Russia. This is a mistake, the authors believe because Moscow poses a threat not only to Ukraine but also to the security and prosperity of the United States. If the Kremlin captures Ukraine, it will not stop and the Baltic countries will be the next to be defended by NATO. And therefore, American soldiers will also be drawn into the war. Therefore, the White House should provide Kyiv with a greater number of HIMARS and long-range ATACMS missiles so that Ukraine can strike at Russian supply chains. Also, Ukraine needs more air defense to protect against Russian missile and air strikes. The fear of "provoking Putin" should be put on the back burner, the US should remember that it is also a nuclear power, and the tactics of constantly threatening Putin should no longer work. The only way out, the letter says, is to act now and provide Ukraine with everything it needs to liberate the occupied territories. After all, any pause gives an advantage to Putin, who will use it to regroup and regain strength.

Luis Garicano, former vice president of Renew Europe, writes in a column on Politico that financial support for Ukraine cannot be delayed. The EU has declared an economic war on Russia, but currently Ukraine has much greater economic losses than the Russian Federation, Gariсano writes. Russiaʼs fossil fuel exports provided the Kremlin with €82 billion in payments from the EU since February 24. Ukraine received only 6.1 billion as support. The 9 billion in aid promised by the European Commission to partially cover the deficit has still not arrived due to bureaucratic obstacles: in particular, the increase in the rate of macro-financial assistance to 70% due to default risks, and therefore the need to reserve an additional €6 billion. Garicano believes that the EU has two ways to solve this problem: first, member states could attract their own additional funds to the reserve fund, which may be difficult due to the energy crisis. Second, the EU could increase the long-term budget for foreign policy spending, which would be a good solution, but would take time. And there is not much time left, the author believes because Putin hopes that the West will soon sink into recession and forget about Ukraine. However, Gariсano believes that one should not forget that inflation, falling GDP growth rates, energy and food crises are direct consequences of Russian military aggression, and EU priorities should be appropriate.

The Washington Post writes about the Wagner Group ― Russian mercenaries who have emerged from the shadows since the beginning of the Russian Federationʼs full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The Wagnerians have long been doing dirty work for the Kremlin: in the east of Ukraine, in Libya, Syria, and some African countries, but Russia has always denied any ties to the group. Now Russian television openly praises the mercenaries for their success in the "denazification" of Ukraine, which is ironic, because the group is named after Hitlerʼs favourite composer Richard Wagner. Moreover, now the Wagnerians are also responsible for recruiting new soldiers, in particular, in Russian prisons. The group is headed by 52-year-old Dmytro Utkin, call sign "Wagner", lieutenant colonel of the GRU (Russian special service) and former special forces. It is also believed that the oligarch close to Putin Yevgeniy Prigozhin, who in June was awarded the title of Hero of the Russian Federation, allegedly for the success of the Wagnerians in the Luhansk direction, is related to the group. While mercenary work is prohibited in Russia, Wagner and Prigozhin tour prisons and recruit everyone except those convicted of rape, terrorism or drug smuggling. The greatest demand is for those convicted of intentional murder and robbery, the publication writes, referring to a prisoner of one of the colonies. New recruits undergo only two weeks of training, which is likely to affect the effectiveness of the group and reduce its value, according to the British Ministry of Defense.