The film "Russians at War", which whitewashes the Russian military fighting against Ukraine, is planned to be shown at the film festival in Zurich (Switzerland). The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine condemned the idea of showing the film "Russians at War" at any cultural venues.
This is stated on the official page of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in X.
"We strongly condemn any attempt to give Russia a cultural arena in which to whitewash its war crimes, while Russian troops continue to commit atrocities against Ukrainians," the message reads.
The spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Heorhiy Tykhyi also called for the refusal to show the film at the film festival in Zurich, which will be held from October 3 to 13 this year.
“This is a propaganda film whitewashing war crimes, not a documentary. The real Russians at war are invaders, war criminals and rapists. Hiding them makes you complicit,” he wrote.
Previously, the film was shown at the Venice Film Festival and the TIFF Film Festival in Toronto, which caused widespread criticism from Ukraine. Moreover, the festival in Toronto initially canceled the screening of the film due to "significant threats to the work of the festival and public safety", but later showed it on another day.
What movie is it about?
The film "Russians at War" was shot by former Russia Today documentarian Anastasia Trofimova. Trofimova shot the tape while in the war zone in Ukraine.
The film shows only brief glimpses of the actual fighting, it does not give an insight into the destruction that Russia is causing in Ukraine.
In particular, the tape features a Ukrainian who fights on the side of Russia and tells that there is a civil war in Ukraine and that Ukraine bombed its own eastern regions. Another character broadcasts a classic Russian narrative about Ukrainian Nazis.
The heroes of the film are "poor ordinary Russians" who fight only for money, do not understand why this war is necessary, cry for the dead and are generally manipulated by politicians.
- Meanwhile, the Canadian public broadcaster TVO decided not to broadcast the tape "Russians at War", having listened to the Ukrainian-Canadian community.
- The Ministry of Culture and Strategic Communications included former employee of the propaganda channel Russia Today and Russian-Canadian director Anastasia Trofimova, who directed the film "Russians at War", to the list of persons who pose a threat to the national security of Ukraine.