The great Ukro-US split: reactions
Zelensky's art of the deal. 'dragging out a lost cause'. old joke about the Jewish pirate ship. Poroshenko, Bondarenko, Boiko, Tales IV Reich, Herashchenko react
Today’s topics:
Another day, another death by mobilization
My thoughts on understanding Zelensky’s unique communication style
Pro-western opposition leader Poroshenko responds to Zelensky’s trip. He is clearly trying to present himself as a better negotiation partner for Trump
Azovites Tales of the IV Reich and Roman Ponomarenko criticize Zelensky for his diplomatic disaster and bemoan European idiocy
Political analyst Bondarenko claims that his government sources tell him that Zelensky, urged on by the Europeans, is deliberately trying to provoke conflict with Trump. To understand why, he brings up the old joke about the Jewish pirate ship.
Frontline journalist Boiko breaks down the real number of Ukrainian troops at the frontline, once corruption and desertion is taken into account
Ukrainian politicians react to US pause in military aid, and speculations over a mysterious statement on Trump and peace by Ukraine’s parliament. Imprisoned parliamentarian Dubinsky wonders if Zelensky’s righthand man Yermak is out to betray him
Some entertaining memes
Today’s article will cover reactions in Ukraine’s political arena to the Zelensky-Trump conflict. But to begin with, a snippet of everyday life for ordinary Ukrainians - another man died in a mobilization centre after being snatched off the street by press gangs. Here is what the USAID-funded Suspilne wrote on it. I’d advise caution on the claim that the man’s body showed no signs of abuse. Beatings at the mobilization centres are how fresh meat are acclimatized.
A man dies at the Kremenchuk District Military Recruitment and Social Support Center
On March 2, a conscript born in 1977 died at the Kremenchuk District Territorial Recruitment and Social Support Center (TCC & SP).
This was reported on the official Facebook page of the Poltava TCC & SP.
According to the statement, at around 10:20 AM, police officers brought the man to the center to update his military records. He then underwent a military medical examination, which deemed him fit for service.
At approximately 5:40 PM, his health suddenly deteriorated—he turned pale and lost consciousness. TCC & SP staff called an ambulance and a resuscitation team. However, they were unable to save him, and at 6:30 PM, doctors pronounced him dead.
A police investigative team arrived at the scene. Preliminary findings revealed no violations in the center's procedures and no signs of physical force or injuries on the deceased. According to medical professionals, the cause of death was acute heart failure.
The TCC & SP leadership has launched an internal investigation.
Meditations on Zelensky
Now, back to the airy peaks of high diplomacy. It’s certainly been a tumultuous week for Chairman Zelensky. Sailing the seas depends on the helmsman, but such turbulent waters would strain even the most seasoned. And Zelensky, who made his name by performing vulgar jokes for his lowbrow Russo-Ukrainian audience, certainly never felt much need to focus on the subtle art of negotiations.
Recall, too, his brutally populist election slogans in 2019. One of the most amusing ones can be seen below. On the left is a billboard advertising then-president Petro Poroshenko. It reads:
There are many candidates - AND ONLY ONE PRESIDENT
Petro Oleksiivich Poroshenko
To the right is Zelensky’s billboard. It simply says ‘AND THAT’S ME!’ - replying to Poroshenko’s claim that there’s only one president.
Or this one:
Spring will show,
Who stole, and where.
ZE! For President - Servant of the People
Replying to another journalist who recalled the above billboard, Azovite commentator Tales of the IV Reich (more on him later) ironically reproduced Zelensky’s election promises on March 2:
ELECTION PROGRAM
OF THE CANDIDATE FOR THE PRESIDENCY OF UKRAINE VOLODYMYR ZELENSKY
I will tell you about the Ukraine of my dreams.
A Ukraine where only fireworks are fired at weddings and birthday celebrations.
A Ukraine where you can open a business in an hour, obtain a foreign passport in 15 minutes, and vote in elections in one second via the Internet.
Where there are no job advertisements saying "Work in Poland", but instead, in Poland, there are advertisements saying "Work in Ukraine."
Where a young family has only one concern—to choose between an apartment in the city or a house in the countryside.
Where doctors and teachers receive real salaries, and corrupt officials receive real prison terms.
Where the Carpathian forests are untouchable, not the politicians.
Where a grandmother receives a decent pension, not a heart attack from a utility bill.
Where intelligence, education, talent, and conscience are the basis for appointments, not the fact that someone was baptized together as children.
Where roads exist, but fools do not.
This is the Ukraine of real and fulfilled dreams. The Ukraine of the near future.
A Ukraine to which people return.
It’s also worth keeping in mind Zelensky’s hometown - Krivoy Rog. There are few cities as brutal. I visited it several times, including during one of its many industrial strikes. The city is literally red with iron ore, and it features Ukraine’s largest steel factory, currently owned by the Indian ArcelorMittal. Here’s a travel video about Krivoy Rog so you can get a feel of the vibe. The title of the video - Krivoy Rog: a catastrophe-city. The Ukrainian Detroit
Finally, even some Ze-supporters on twitter had some criticism for the Great Leader - his insistence on conducting negotiations in English, without an interpreter. While his English has certainly improved, it is still clearly awkward for him at times. Probably not the best idea, given the seriousness of the negotiations and his own (and the culturo-linguistic) proclivity to bluntness.
But this, too, is natural for Zelensky. He is the consummate populist, who believes that he alone enjoys a direct, unmediated link with the People. Hence the name of his party, for instance - the Servant of the People. The sociologist Olga Baysha has written on Zelensky’s populism extensively.
It’s no wonder that Zelensky believes that all situations can be solved merely through his direct communication. In my recent article ‘Why Minsk Failed’, I brought up Zelensky’s pre-election promise to stop the war by simply ‘talking with Putin’. This populist pretense ignored the fact that Putin was, in fact, not simply eagerly waiting to talk with the fabled Zelensky.
Instead, Putin has always had quite concrete demands for the Ukrainian government - to formally abandon any ambitions to join NATO, and to provide space for ‘pro-Russian’ political parties to participate in Ukrainian political life. Zelensky wasn’t able to deliver on that, and hence no amount of ‘just talking’ helped.
And in just the same way, Zelensky’s belief in the magical power of his voice proved quite insufficient when it came to Trump. Trump seems to have a quite clear demand to see an end to the fighting in Ukraine, whether out of genuine sympathy, desire for a Nobel, or strategic aims to redirect military attention towards China - or a mix of all the above. Regardless, Zelensky instead decided to wax lyrical on the need for US security guarantees to Ukraine, despite Trump’s own constantly-stated refusal to give anything of the sort.
Poroshenko
Anyway, Zelensky and his fellow ‘Servants’ of the People are now trying to spin the recent events as having the salutary effect of uniting society around the president. Quite an attractive idea, given the fact that even the polls in wartime, highly censored Ukraine have been showing Zelensky’s popularity dropping constantly over the past year.
Things have apparently also been good for Zelensky’s battle against competitors. Pro-Zelensky social media accounts have been gloating about how opposition leader Poroshenko (sanctioned yet again by Zelensky a few weeks ago in what was transparently clear as preparation for possible elections) has been forced to support Zelensky against the US. Here’s what Poroshenko wrote on March 1. Note the overall strategy - present himself as the rational statesman constantly aiding the army, in contrast to the fickle populist Zelensky:
Half of the country didn’t sleep after yesterday’s video from Washington. We were all holding our breath for Ukraine.
And now, everyone is asking: what’s next?
Some expected me to criticize Zelensky. But no, there will be no criticism, because that is not what the country needs right now.
I will explain in a few key points while standing here, together with the brigades defending Ukraine’s South. Today, we brought them aid that had been contracted earlier. Because no matter what happens, we must continue strengthening the Ukrainian Army.
The relationship between Ukraine and the United States is not just about Zelensky and Trump. It is a relationship between two great nations that understand democracy and freedom are not empty words—neither for Ukraine nor for the U.S. We cannot allow ourselves to spread anti-American sentiment.
The first thing we must think about now is the Armed Forces of Ukraine, which, due to various decisions, might be left without American weapons. And this is by no means a criticism of President Zelensky, because the only thing Ukraine needs right now is unity.
For some reason, the Army is disappearing from the public discourse—events at the front, where the enemy is making breakthroughs, the situation with supplies, and the state’s defense capability are being sidelined. This should not be happening.
We strongly hope that President Zelensky has a "Plan B." We believe that after meetings in London and Brussels, we will come out with several important messages:
☑️ European unity. We hope that Europe will provide us with weapons, financial support, and increased investment in the defense industry. That it will help bring our American partners back to the negotiating table. We need to restore bipartisan support in the U.S. and strengthen parliamentary diplomacy. We cannot afford to weaken our position.
☑️ Internal unity. Unity in parliament and a reformation of the Government into a Government of National Unity.
☑️ The third thing we want to hear: when and how will the war end? Not just hiding behind security guarantees.
We must preserve the state. We must not allow capitulation. The guarantor of Ukraine’s security must be the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Period.
We need to stop the talk and help the Army.
The cautious Hitlerites
Now onto my favorite segment - Azovite nazis who worry that Zelensky’s forever-war is putting Ukrainian statehood at risk, and hence support a negotiated end to the war.
We’ll start with my favorite - Tales of the IV Reich. He changed the name of his telegram to Tales of the IV Empire back around 2023, but I prefer the old name. I wrote about his likely evolution from the anarchist antifa scene to Hitlerophilia here.
Keep in mind, also, that unlike the pro-war nazis like Serhii Sternenko sponsored by the Democrat Party, Azov, to which Tales belongs, has always been more pro-Republican. Sternenko, who I wrote about here, has of course been desperately supporting Zelensky against the nefarious Washingtonian Cheeto.
Keep in mind the irony - back in 2021, Sternenko was furiously protesting against Zelensky alongside other liberal-nazis. Sternenko famously organized a pogrom of the president’s office, leaving behind anti-Zelensky graffiti. But now that Zelensky represents forever-war, Sternenko is his biggest fan…
Now, let’s have a look at the anti-Sternenko Tales’ opinion on Zelensky’s latest diplomatic special operation. He posted this on March 1. Note the reactions - his readers didn’t like his take.
Tales elucidated his fears about Zelensky’s forever-war strategy quite clearly on March 1. I remind the reader that Viktor Medvedchuk was the leader of Ukraine’s ‘pro-Russian’ Opposition Platform For Life, which polled at first or second place in 2020 and 2021. Medvedchuk now resides in Russia, and it is often speculated/joked that he would become the leader of Ukraine if Russia wins the war/forces Ukraine to readmit ‘pro-Russian’ candidates to elections. Uzhgorod is Ukraine’s westernmost city.
If we don’t sign a peace deal by the summer of 2025—no big deal. Medvedchuk will sign it in Uzhhorod a year later. Without the hated Trump by then.
Don't be upset.
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