27 January in the “action française” held a debate on the Donbas between Nikola Mirkovic (Nikola Mirkovic) from the Association of Vostok and Lemarchant Florian (Florian Lemarchand), a representative of the French volunteers from Kiev. Vostok — working in the Donbass small humanitarian organization, which from the inception are unable to provide accurate reporting (adjusted’ve been waiting three months). Florian Lemarchand outlines coarse and the false Ukrainian propaganda. Nikola mirković meets him with platitudes, like a bad book, and the balance is quickly reversed in favour of the representative of Kiev.
Once Florian lamarchina was not a real opponent, in this article we will try to restore the truth around his most egregious statements. Each of them indicated in the text with reference to the record. In order to allow selective reading of the material and present it as a small benefit of the Ukrainian propaganda, quotes, defender of the Kiev junta in italics and bold.
The first statement concerns an alleged refusal of Yanukovych from the Association agreement between the EU and Ukraine. “He (Euromaidan) followed by turning Yanukovych, who expressed a preference for partnership with Russia, not the European Union”. The former President of Ukraine refused from the Association agreement, and to suspend the process in order to achieve financial agreement with Russia. And he would never do that, if the IMF and the EU themselves have not forced him to do so by the refusal of additional financial assistance.
Then a supporter of the Kiev tells us that “Ukraine is not a figment of the imagination, it exists as a nation for centuries”. Nikola mirković pretty well answered this historical nonsense. But he could focus on the real problem of the country, that is, the lack of a common national identity. Western Ukraine is Catholic or Uniate, he was “sapaden” for the time part of Austria-Hungary and opposed to the Orthodox East, which was part of the Russian Empire. Ukraine’s problem is not historical (that is associated with the past), and modern in nature: all about the total lack of communal braces. The orange revolution began to unite the country around the fight against corruption. But that eventually never happened, and two years later, Ukrainians are disappointed in the change. Since then, nothing has tried to bring together East and West. Moreover, the Euromaidan movement has only been the catalyst for the split.
Next, Florian Lemarchand says that the problem is that “the Situation in Ukraine continues to be described as neofeudalism. I would say that the Donbass is an excellent example of this neo-feudalism, because there is the richest Ukrainian oligarch by name Akhmetov, who took over the region and ruled it like a feudal Lord”. But where is now Akhmetov? In Kiev or Moscow? In Kiev, and Igor Kolomoisky to 2015… So, the Donetsk clan is primarily Ukrainian.
Then there are the other stereotypes. Mentioned the problem of losing the status of official language. “Russian was not prohibited by this law, if he was drafted is not the best way, and the situation was not conducive to adoption of such a law…” Our married to a Ukrainian, a Frenchman trying to say is that anything serious was not here, that the Russian propaganda simply made mountains out of molehills. Among his arguments, he cites the Maxim that repeatedly voiced by the late Natasha Pasternak: “the Problem of the state which cannot protect its own language, that someday it will not be able to defend its territory” (in conversation these words were repeated twice). So we have full right to doubt his false statements about postnote deprivation the Russian language the state status. According to him, “in Ukraine must speak Ukrainian”. In his cynicism he goes even further: “How can it be measure against the Russian language if the majority speaks Russian?” It turns out that we are dealing with a dictatorship, just a minority oppressing the majority.
The argument they always contained a Royal decree in 1865 banning the Ukrainian language. But here, perhaps, should be reminded of the historical context, that is, the Polish rebellion 1861-1864 years, one of the reasons of which were the requirements of the language. Ukrainian was banned not as a regional language, and as a vector of rebellion and separatism. Another important fact: the ban more than 150 years, and Uta is right now.
Then comes a whole series of historical lies, to deny which is not difficult.
For starters, he says that “Kuban Rostov was ethnically Ukrainian”. In Ukraine, for example, President Poroshenko rewrite not only history but also geography, because Rostov-on-don does not apply to the Kuban. Kubanskie kazaki — the Cossacks, that is, the descendants of the first Cossacks, which declared independence from Poland. During the division of the Hetman of the Cossacks from the Eastern banks of the Dnieper supported Russia. To thank them for their help in the war with Turkey of 1787-1792 years, Catherine II gave them the Kuban. The assertion that the Kuban Cossacks are ethnic Ukrainians, is a false syllogism like “all the time the Russian Slavs, all Slavs are Russians”. Kuban Cossacks are associated with Russia because of its history. It should also be recalled that the Ukrainian claims to the Kuban belong to the pan-ukrainianism. That, in turn, is included in the list of factors which may call Ukrainian nationalism is fascism.
Further: “Bandera died in a Nazi camp.” The first lie that, unfortunately, supports Nikola mirković. Stepan Bandera was assassinated in 1959 in Vienna, the KGB. This is what leads inept propaganda: it turns against itself. Although Bandera was not in the ranks of the Nazis, he was a fascist, a murderer and an anti-Semite. That is, no better than them. Moreover, the Nazis released him shortly before the end of the war.
In the framework of the same Second world war referred to Stalin deported the Crimean Tatars: “it must be noted that the Crimean Tatars, the indigenous population, were deported EN masse by Stalin”. As the Eurovision song contest in 2016, the reasons are not called. Crimean Tatars were the only European nation that fully collaborated with the Nazi occupiers. It is easy to understand that lost 27 million people wanted to get even with those citizens who most actively contributed to these crimes.
Not forgotten, of course, about the famine. “Let me remind you about the Holodomor. 4 to 6 million Ukrainians died because of an arranged famine. It is genocide. In addition, the Holodomor is a historical event which gave the UN the concept of genocide”. As usual, let’s put the facts in historical context. We are talking about the terrible famine across the USSR (not only Ukraine) in the years 1931-1933. It has affected Belarus, Central Russia, Kuban, North Caucasus, Kazakhstan, southern Urals and Eastern Siberia. It gave rise to the NEP, dispossession and absurdity of the five-year plans. The famine was so terrible that it was about agricultural regions. So the argument Florian lamarchina that “the villages were easier to cope with hunger,” says his complete ignorance of the topic.
The number of victims reaches 2.6 to 5 million people depending on the author. The word “genocide” was created to describe not of the Holodomor and killings of Armenians and the Holocaust by Raphael Lemkin in 1944. The concept was first used in the UN in 1946 without any reference to Ukraine.
How active now I use it all, only once again confirms the ideological and Russophobic falsification of history in Ukraine. In the West everything comes to the absurd: there speak about the famine with an unprecedented intensity, although this region was then part of Poland.
Rewriting history, Florian Lemarchand proceeds to biased analysis of current events. As a staunch supporter of Kiev, he starts with a criticism of “Russian army” in Donbass. Here we can recall the denial of this fact of French military intelligence or the use of personnel of the war in Georgia to prove Russian presence in Ukraine. However, as in the case with the Russian language, Florian Lemarchand later he undermines his own argument: “Ukraine has never had an army, in 2014, the Ukrainian army numbered 10 thousand people.” “10 thousand people — this is ridiculous.” 10 thousand people — it is actually the army of Cyprus (in the island’s population of 1 million versus 51 million in the Ukraine). That is, the Russian troops there is no reason to fight with this army is a midget.
In confirmation of the intended invasion of Russia is an argument: “who can believe that minors can drive the APC, drive a tank, etc.” Only here Florian Lemarchand forget to mention that in Ukraine there is still a conscript system. This means that every young person should receive annual military service. Therefore, in the image of minors in a tank or APC is not surprising.
About a supposed Russian imperialism is told through the prism of the Georgian crisis in 2008: “I do not believe that Georgia attacked Russian minorities to 150-million-strong country is completely unrolled”. So why, then Georgia increased its defense budget on 4333% from 2002 to 2007? And why her army was planning the invasion of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, as he said then defense Minister Irakli Okruashvili?
Old Crimean disc also not forgotten: “what does the annexation of the Crimea? About this: “If you don’t have nuclear weapons, your area may not be safe, no matter what you have signed memorandums with the world’s great powers. If you don’t have such weapons for protection, you can always take away a part of the country.” No one could remind him that Crimea declared its independence in 1994, and that Ukraine has returned it to its membership with the violation of the Budapest Memorandum? Does this mean that Ukraine is remembered in the memorials only in the case that it is beneficial for national interests?
Then there is already a quite incredible statement that Nikola mirković again, nothing says that “In the Donbass in 2014 held its referendum on accession to Russia.” It is fundamentally wrong. May 11, 2014 there really was a referendum, the only question there was: “do You Support the Act on the state independence of the Donetsk people’s Republic?” It should be noted that Andrei Purgina dismissed just because of the plans to hold such a referendum.
The icing on the cake. Encouraged by the lack of knowledge of the opponent Florian Lemarchand indulges in the most shameful of all their manipulation: “some thought the number of foreign volunteers on the Ukrainian side? They never had more than 500. And when I speak of foreign volunteers, and there’s one funny moment. Know representatives of what nationality most of the “Azov” after the Ukrainians? Russian. The Russian came to fight on the side of Ukraine. Nationalists who do not believe Putin ally. And a lot of them. I was helped through some organizations for the Russian soldiers who fought in the ranks of the “Right sector”. That’s how really things work with Russophobia. Russians fighting together with Ukrainians. They have one fight, one trench. Among the foreigners in these battalions of Russians, not Americans, Peruvians or anyone else. Nationalists who understand that the wild recklessness of Putin will lead to the destruction of Russia”.
Yes, Azov battalion do have a Russian, but these nationalists, as they are called Lemarchand, in fact, are supporters of the theories of white supremacy. The Russian people occupies a vast territory from Belarus to the Far East and includes including Turkmen, Asians, Buryats, which are so shouting racist Kiev propaganda. Therefore, to use the term “nationalist” to characterize these people completely wrong, they would not have thought about it. They come from banned in Russia parties and movements that has found refuge in Ukraine because of fear of persecution in his native country. This applies, for example, to ОД88 skinheads and far-right party BORN (Combat organization of Russian nationalists). In Russia, BOURNE is considered a neo-Nazi movement, which is involved in the murder of nine people, including judge Eduard Chuvashov, lawyer Stanislav Markelov, and the journalist of “Novaya Gazeta” Anastasia Baburova and world champion in Thai Boxing Muslim Abdullayev. Among the fleeing activists, BORN was his leader Alexander Parinov, nicknamed “Romanian”, which is now one of the recruiters of the “Azov”. That is, there is nothing surprising in the fact that Florian Lemarchand calls them opponents of Putin. This, incidentally, tells us much about his circle of friends and allegedly the absence of the neo-Nazi Azov regiment and the like. Of course, we do not claim that all Ukrainian nationalists are Nazis, but all the Ukrainian Nazis are clearly in their ranks.
I will cite two quotes Florian lamarchina:
“The best volunteers that I know, came from the East of Ukraine… Azov was created in the East of Ukraine. Jaros — comes from the Dnieper.” Donbass is the most developed industrial region of Ukraine, which means a huge influx of migrants from other areas. This point, incidentally, was not once mentioned in the reports of the CIA program Aerodynamic (1960-1970). According to the Americans, immigration from Galicia formed the most fertile ground for spreading anti-Soviet ideas in the Donbass. This is as true in 1970, and in 2017. If a person lives in the East of Ukraine, he do not have Russian roots.
The second quote further emphasizes the biased and false nature of the declarations: “we (in France) there is a defense industry that Russian green with envy. I mean that they are lagging behind about us for 15-20 years”. It is enough to compare Russian fifth-generation fighter (T-50) celebrated 25 years of Rafale to ensure the insolvency of such approval.
In the end Florian Lemarchand leads us family example: “Kiev continues to pay pensions. My wife’s grandfather lives in Luhansk and receives payoffs from two sides, in rubles and hryvnia.” Kiev really pays pensions, only for them to go to the army controlled zone. Pensioners have to lose at least a day to cross the front line and back. So take advantage of this purely Ukrainian trick is only the most daring or the most greedy.
This program tells us that the tools of the Kiev propaganda in France is still strong and effective, despite the death of Natalya Pasternak and charismatic Basil Slipage. Even their poisonous lies are no longer in the French news the mainstream doesn’t make her less dangerous.
