Ukraine’s drone assault on Russia’s long-range bombers was unprecedented, not that you just’d comprehend it from studying the Russian papers. Nor from watching the information bulletins right here.
Monday’s entrance pages had been dominated by images of the wreckage of a road bridge collapsing on to a passenger train within the Bryansk area, after it was blown up late on Saturday night time.
Two Russian bridges collapse, killing seven folks
In the meantime, the flagship discuss present on state TV right here on Monday morning did not even point out the assault. As a substitute, there was only a breathless build-up to the newest spherical of peace talks in Istanbul.
The shortage of visible protection of the drone assault is partly due to the sensitivities round publishing photographs of Russian army infrastructure.
However I feel it is also as a result of the Kremlin desires to minimize the assault, which was a vastly embarrassing breach of Russia’s defences.
So the place the assault is talked about within the papers, it is carried out in a method to reinforce Moscow’s narrative – that Ukraine is the aggressor out to derail the peace course of.
Ukraine targets Russian army plane
The Izvestia newspaper, for instance, describes it as a terrorist assault, and says it “calls into query Kyiv’s readiness for de-escalation”.
There isn’t any reference to the size of the harm, and there is definitely no sense of alarm.
It is a comparable vibe on the streets of Moscow, the place we meet Irina. She believes the experiences of the assault are “exaggerated”.
“These planes are very previous and hardly anybody wants them,” she says.
Irina believes the experiences of Ukraine’s drone assault are ‘exaggerated’
One other passer-by, referred to as Vladimir, says he trusts his namesake Mr Putin to reply when the time is correct.
“This have to be carried out systematically, confidently, and with none form of nervous breakdowns, or any exhibits of soul,” he says.
Vladimir says he trusts the Russian president to reply in the precise manner
There’s loads of soul on present on social media, although, the place Russia’s influential army bloggers are calling for a speedy retaliation.
One common channel, referred to as Dva Mayora or “Two Majors”, even stated it was “a motive to launch nuclear strikes on Ukraine”.
Others are directing their anger at Russia’s army command, accusing the management of complacency for storing the planes out within the open.
Learn extra:
Putin humiliated by ‘Russia’s Pearl Harbor’ – analysis
Zelenskyy: Strikes will go ‘in history books’
A map displaying the placement of the Russian airbases focused in drone strikes by Ukraine
All of it served to overshadow the newest spherical of peace talks in Istanbul, the place the one concrete final result was one other prisoner alternate and the return of 6,000 lifeless troopers from either side.
And if something, the outlook for peace now could be much more bleak than it was earlier than the talks started. That is as a result of Russia has now introduced its blueprint for a settlement, and it seemingly gives no signal of compromise in any respect.
In response to Russian media experiences, the doc is a listing of Moscow’s maximalist calls for, together with neutrality for Ukraine, limits to its military, give up of territory and the lifting of sanctions. Solely then, Russia says, wouldn’t it agree to finish the struggle.
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The Kremlin itself nonetheless hasn’t commented on the drone assault – a silence that speaks volumes. Are you able to think about Downing Road doing the identical if one thing comparable occurred within the UK?
There’ll undoubtedly be repercussions in some unspecified time in the future, each externally and internally. So, regardless of the discuss being of peace on the talks in Turkey, the temper continues to be very a lot one in every of struggle.
