(please click on ‘cc’ to see the English language subtitles)
A big THANK YOU to Eugenia for translating and subtitling this excellent video!
Leave a Reply --Link to Moderation Policy--
Only Logged in users can comment.
New Commentators Register here to comment.
Who is going to allow a russian equivalent of USAID to be active in the West? Really? How would that fit with the current russophobic rhetoric and non-stop baseless accusations for every evil in the world? RT and Sputnik have done a great job, but even they are under constant fire.
Only a few years ago Russia was interested in its own survival, it was not in any position to project soft power across the world.
What about the recent Olympics and the world cup? Is this not an attempt of Russia to change its bogey man image? Have you not seen the western histerics and smear campaign accompanying those events?
Seriously. The whole western propaganda machine would swing into action to counteract anything Russia could attempt to do. Russia should concentrate on building strong foundations for its economy, continue to build relations with the neutral and friendly nations based on mutual interests and detach itself from the dependency on western credit.
Russia has already changed the world order, almost single handedly. It has apparently achieved that without the likes of USAID-made-in-russia.
RR
Well spoken. This video is a complete inversion of facts as they exist. Russia’s success is being both negated and questioned, while American activities and “success” blown out of proportion. One has to wonder what the motive for this video is. And yes, RT and Sputnik have indeed done a great job, with millions of people watching RT. The World Cup in Russia demolished the anti-Russian rhetoric of the Western media, with Russia achieving a magnificent media scoop, and one which has opened the country to the world. The Internet was full of videos from Russia, with people showing surprise at what they saw. After the World Cup nothing will be the same as far as the image of Russia goes and peoples perceptions of it.
RR
Additional note: Listen carefully to her words. I doubt very much if Anna Sochina wrote the script for this video. The actual script is typical bureaucratic mentality and terminology, written by somebody with Government experience. This video is nothing but an anti-Putin psy ops.
@B.F.
??? She has some points.
All respect for Steven Seagal but as Embassador in FR with US? No. Same goes for the hypocrisy being Russian patriot but travel to US to get their first baby born.
Unfortunately dollares talk too much in countries with low minimum salaries.
Tomsen
She has made some points, like US NGO’s recruiting Russians, a well known fact. However, everything else is negation of Russian success. As for Steven Seagal, that was indeed an excellent pick by the Russian Foreign Ministry. Seagal is a celebrity, his job being promotion of cultural and other cooperation. Why not. Yes, some Russians do go to the US, but the bulk do not. Also, there is an American community living in Russia, a point you forgot to mention.
So I guess Russia did not influence the US elections then :-)
I agree with the points RR made. All outlets in the west that promote Russia, do it well, but on a much finer level than USAID. If Russia is so terrible at “soft power”, it still managed to replace the USA as the major power broker in the middle east.
But the question remains. Why should Russia use this “soft power”? It is not in their interests to get involved as the USA does. Russia has a higher moral standing than the west for this very reason. Stooping to their level will not help it in the long run. As we can see from Syria, “soft power” is finished. Russians do it with “hard power”.
Agree, the World Championship soccer has done a lot for the perception of common people about Russia. I’ve read lots of positive comments here in Belgium from journalists and supporters. They had seen another Russia than the one propaganda had put into their minds.
I think one should include RT and Sputnik in the list of crap:
RT is standardised leftist stuff, without much intellectual power, and simulating just the standard style of “news”.
Sputnik is full of cheap garbage, naked women etc.
Nowhere is an independent strong voice to be seen, which has something novel and interesting to say.
Just reacting, in a weak way, to “injustice suffered by the west” (hah, that’s new).
Completely agree for RT and Sputnik that often seem the (bad) copies of the worst western mainstream media and have the same leanings.
same meanings, bad copies?
Incredible how both get accused, persecuted and censored in the West for so many years, under Putin goverment times.
On most of the topics they share exactly the same ideas of their western mainstream fellows.
@Michael 0
I miss completely the smearing of RT and Sputnik. RT is top of the pop and Sputnik a needed supplement.
The RT website is also filled with many stories that, for some reason or other, involve scantily clad women. Same with the adverts. I only notice these when I turn off my Ghostery adblocker in order to read the forum comments (learn much more from commenters than most of the reportage). I turn on Ghostery and all the distractions vanish. I miss those women sometimes ;)
Oliver K
No, RT cannot be included “in the list of crap”. If it was “crap”, then why is it constantly attacked by the Western media and political establishments ? Also, how on earth can RT be labelled “leftist stuff”, if by “leftists” you mean the false leftists in the West ?
B.F,
Agreed, I wouldn’t call them “crap”. Unfortunately, for the most part, there is an obvious progressive, “leftist” agenda . Their factual coverage of geopolitical events and general support for the policies of sane nations, is why we still visit them daily.
If they hope to gain an even greater audience, they should refrain from hiring almost exclusively western “real leftists”, mainly espousing social reform. Most support for better relations with Russia, in the United States and Canada, comes from the “right” leaning, independent voting populace.
To answer your questions:
Bluntly, They are constantly under attack because they tell the truth about what’s going on around the world. They expose the lies and evil perpetrated by the empire. The empire cannot afford to have their populace, nor vassal citizens become informed. Their crimes so egregious, their economy so manipulated, that they must have absolute control over the narrative. Unfortunately, RT and Sputnik are giving needless ammo to the Russia haters and turning off some potential supporters, by the daily aggressive reporting on social causes, mainly in the United States.
Secondly, unfortunately my friend, there’s very little difference between “false leftists in the West” and most “real” leftists in the West. Though definite exceptions exist. People who still prioritize peace above social issues. For the most part, both are focused on social justice issues and their hatred of Trump. When’s the last time you saw any real opposition to war, either organizational or grass roots, from the “real”leftists in the West.
If you mistakenly tune into US mainstream news, you get social justice and Russia Hating. Well, Neocon, Anglo-Zio Fox gives you the Russia Hating and Globalist do good agenda. But it’s purpose is primarily to control the ignorant “right”. Subtract the Russia hating and mostly truthful reporting on world events, RT and Sputnik aren’t too different when reading their articles or listening to the their radio.
Btw, you should check out some of their recent reporting on events in the Balkans. Written like writers “educated” in the West. Very little historical accuracy.
B.F. writes ” If it was “crap”, then why is it constantly attacked by the Western media and political establishments ?”
The Western media etc. is criminally insane. So then “crap” is still better.
And with “leftist stuff” I mean just the usual minority noise etc.
RT seems to be mostly opinion, very rarely do they investigate something themselves.
RT-Germany has from time to time something interesting, but in general they do not seem very sharp.
We should not be content that say RT is not as completely insane as the rest (perhaps the self-image of RT is that of the “good old leftist” from the, say, 60’s or 70’s). For example, has there ever been an example of true investigative journalism at RT? Shouldn’t be that hard to figure out, with some effort, what’s behind the Skripal case for example. But everybody is just guessing around.
Probably it is a wrong translation of “soft power“ into Russian as “мягкая сила” (gentle or tender power).
In my opinion a proper translation would be “программирующая сила” (programming power), because English “soft” in “soft power” comes from software (as opposite to hardware).
институциональная сила, because it is based on negotiations, treaties, trade, laws, institutions, various ties between nations that are not based on military power.
And propaganda,deceit,color revolutions,bribery,corruption,organized crime,subversive and treasonous networking,assassinations for those practicing the dark side of soft power.
Add to that, cultural colonisation and sabotage, other important aspects of soft power as practiced by Western imperialist powers.
Those things aren’t really soft power. If it is coercive, it isn’t soft power. Or there needs to be an additional distinction, ‘coercive soft power’ and ‘non-coercive soft power’. China, as an example, is using soft power a lot, as other countries see the advantages of interacting with China for future benefit, eg, the one belt, one road initiative. China’s Asian infrastructure bank is an example of soft power.
Wow, she has perfectly called out the appointment of Seagal for the laughable farce it is. What were “they” thinking? Her examples and arguments are excellent. Thanks for letting us know that some think the same – the appointment is weird to say the least and likely harmful to the goal(s) of the position in reality. Sad
I must admit that I find a choice of Seagal somewhat strange, although it is also my understanding that his roots go back to Russia. Mind you he was a fairly popular actor in the past, therefore his face is familiar to many people. I also understand, that Putin gave him Russian citizenship couple of years ago. So, to finalize, choosing him to be a spokesman for Russia is no different that choosing Reagan or Trump in the States.
Perfect sense.
Governments rarely have the right answer. They often don’t know what the question (task or mission) is.
Russia has a manic-depressive complex. They want to retreat into the vast interior of their culture and civilzation while being a bright superpower on the world stage.
The way to judge things, is to forget 1991 (Day 1 of RF), 1999, 2008.
Start examining things from 2014-2015.
The RF has come along way in four years. Amazing. Shocking to the world. Frightening to its adversaries.
Putin has just begun to work.
He needs all the brightest minds, like this young lady, to help him.
Team Putin must become Team Russia.
Civic action by the citizens who love Mother Russia is the next step.
(Thanks to Eugenia for the subtitles and translation.)
Larchmonter445
You are right. Team Putin must become Team Russia. I think Putin is working on it. However, when it comes to this young lady, she needs to improve her knowledge of international affairs. This video of hers is highly inaccurate. See my comment below.
I suppose that it’s a “bit” difficult to have any sort of soft power after decades in which national identity, national and cultural roots have been blamed and destroyed choosing to became a western cultural colony and admiring over all liberalism and trying to copy everything from west as if the country had no past and no history.
Now, after almost thirty years of unbridled admiration for the beloved western partners, for Russia is a “bit” too late for complaining or changing, The damage is already done.
There is no such thing as “soft power”. All of US “soft power” is in fact backed by cold hard cash, whether it’s media, music/pop culture or aid/humanitarian organisations. Russia simply does not have the resources to compete. What Russia can and should do instead is create alliances and participate in multilateral initiatives. This is something the empire has long forgotten how to do. It also needs to strengthen its institutions, as it will be required to build parallel systems (with help from partners) as the current international systems are totally corrupted. (Legal, financial, sports, internet etc)
As for Steven Seagal, I don’t know if he is effective (he also has Serbian citizenship btw). It is just like the Gerard Depardieu issue. What is the cost-benefit of these high profile individuals on Russia’s side?. If it costs little to invite this people to some events then they might as well have them.
Then one could argue that the Kremlin does not know how to convert what cash it does use into influence in targeted countries. There seems to have been too much gescheft and not enough building of useful organizations and infrastructure for getting desired results. For example, the US could spend a few billion dollars and get the percentage of Ukrainians who hate Russia to go from 1% to 6%. Moscow couldn’t even manage to get anything remotely pro-Russian built inside the Ukraine in 20 years.
At a higher level, Moscow has focused too much on alliances with political elites and oligarchs and not enough with everyone else. No amount of effort or bribery could make the Party of Regions compete with the American effort at recruiting as many promising young people as possible. In reality, Moscow helped fund the disaster in the Ukraine over the years. And who can blame the US for trying to get Russia to fund its own cancer?
I agree Ukraine was a painful mistake, but perhaps the Ukraine coup taught Russia something: It seems it was Russian intelligence that helped foil the US-backed coup against Erdogan. USA got Ukraine, but lost Turkey. Not sure it was a good trade…
Serbian girl
Ukraine was no mistake for Russia. How could Russia influence neo-Nazis from western Ukraine ? However, time is on Russia’s side. Ukraine is collapsing financially, and by December of 2017 a total of 4.4 million Ukrainians have fled to Russia.
My point was about sharing intelligence with the leadership of a country prior to a coup.
Serbian girl
I think we can safely conclude that Moscow and Kiev shared intelligence prior to the coup d’etat in 2014. However, how was Yanukovich going to deal with neo-Nazis from western Ukraine ? Send the military against them and be accused of “human rights” violations ? This would have led to a very blood conflict. During the “demonstrations” in Kiev, Yanukovich forbade the police to carry weapons, so that a violent conflict could be avoided. This was abused and foreign mercenaries fired upon both civilians and police. We now have a despondent population which regrets what happened in 2014.
The problem, that Yanukovich had was his attempt to play both sides. He wanted help from Russia, but also very actively entertained joining EU. USofA would not have it, so he was disposed of. I must say, it served him right.
Actually, I believe that all Ukraine’s presidents, used Russia as milking cow, while actively pursuing ties with USofA. Sort of no different than what Poland and other ex communist countries are doing. Do not get confused by their governmental ‘official” anti-Russian stand.
Anonius
Yanukovich was prepared to join the EU as an associate member, on condition the EU could guarantee Ukraines exports. When he went to sign the Association Agreement, the EU at the last moment demanded that Ukraine join NATO. Remarkable, don’t you think ? Yanukovich refused, after which came the coup d’etat.
Paul II
What you have written cannot be accepted. The West used neo-Nazis from western Ukraine to instigate that coup d’etat in Kiev in 2014. The bulk of those “demonstrators” in Kiev were not from the city, but from the western pat of the country. And what happened after that ? No, I don’t mean the war in the Donbass. I mean Ukrainians fleeing the country. According to the former PM of Ukraine, by December of 2017 some 4 million Ukrainians fled to the West and 4.4 million to Russia. There is no way that Russia could have influenced neo-Nazis in the country, who were given the role of a Trojan Horse. However, those millions fleeing to Russia say plenty.
You’ve hit the nail on the head here. Whenever Russia is a thrown Into a bad light they seem to immediately lose the propaganda war. I used to think that it was due to the lack of western resources to control the narrative but maybe it’s a cultural thing. This is a war! Stop giving your “enemy” the chance to check me to its senses and play hard ball. I’ve found rt to be decidedly leftist and while that appeals to the human side of me it’s also a sure fire way to lose the argument to the majority of western audiences.
If u say ” show me the evidence in the skripal affair” it may a understand logical bit when u can be countered with ” fuck u u hate us case if Russian *10 then it’s hard to get a reasoned argument settled. Russia needs to let it’s balls loose to get respected. Ameraka isn’t invulnerable. They are more fractured and afraid than anyone. Take off the gloves and aim below the belt. Lots of tender vittles down there.
“All of US “soft power” is in fact backed by cold hard cash, whether it’s media, music/pop culture or aid/humanitarian organisations. Russia simply does not have the resources to compete.”
I agree. Unlike most countries which can only afford to pay for imports by exporting goods of roughly the same value the US is able to run current account deficits for decades on end. That is the consequence of having the reserve currency of the world. Michael Hudson goes into this in some detail in his book Superimperialism.
Countries like Russia don’t have the economic and political might to strongarm governments into accepting these “soft power” institutions into their country. As such, Russia is doing what it can, using RT to expose western audiences to dissident views, trying to erode confidence in the dollar by promoting cryptocurrencies, precious metals, and by developing alternatives to SWIFT payments system which enforces dollar hegemony and gives intelligence services a close up view of the international payments scheme. Russia is also doing what it can to cultivate mulitlateral alliances and has been somewhat effective in shoring up support for syria and pro-russian elements in Ukraine. But I don’t see how Russia can cultivate “soft power” similar to what America wields — and, if the dollar cannot retain reserve currency status, I doubt that American soft power can endure for long.
I listened to this lady but could not understand the point she is trying to make other than that the US uses NGOs to attempt to subvert Russia, a fact which I am sure the Kremlin are well aware of.
If by soft power we mean non military influence then only profound ignorance could suggest that Russia doesn’t have effective soft power.
In terms of promoting peace and enhancing trade Russia is active almost everywhere.
In South and central America a part of the world which has been little more than a US colony Russian diplomats promote trade with multiple countries offering an alternative to fascism.
In Asia Russian soft power is pushing for a peaceful solution to the Afghan problem by promoting dialogue within the country and involving all the neighbours as well. China is doing the same. In Korea Russia and China have not only deterred another murderous US war but are offering prosperity and help towards reunification of both Koreas.
The Philppines, Indonesia and Malaysia all benefit from Russian and Chinese investment and soft power, again offering a refreshing alternative to US colony status.,
Russian military police are ensuring peace in most of Syria and Russia has strong relationships with every country in the region and even talks to wild card Israel whilst guaranteeing Syrian sovereignty.
I challenge anyone to name one other country in the world that could have achieved what Russia has in the middle east.
Russian soft power is evident in Libya and Egypt and in many other African countries.
To list every country where Russia has influence and a positive presence would take up far more space than we have here.
Russia, also has membership of and is active in multiple organisations embracing the whole of Eurasia and much of the rest of the world.
I have to say – does the lady in the film know anything about her country at all?
The important thing is the Russians are trusted as peacemakers. They don’t threaten or lie.
This is the complete opposite of, first British, then American Zionist imperialism which have brought nothing but misery wherever they have gone and are now devouring their own countries.
Because they are quiet and undramatic about the work that Russia and China are heavily engaged in much of it goes unreported.
The lady in the film is right if she is saying that Russian soft power and diplomacy don’t work as regards the US and the EU which viscerally loathe to see Russia’s multipolar objectives stand foursquare in the way of their arrogant self appointed right to rule the world.
No wonder they are near hysterical and reduced to babbling nonsense, sanctioning anybody and everybody – because they don’t have the power to do it militarily any more and everybody is realising this.
But that is not Russia’s fault.
Nor is it through lack of trying to get on with them. Some might say Russia has tried too hard to appease the west in the past.
Yet patience and perseverance are pulling Turkey and Germany away from the dead end of US imperialism and letting them see a prosperous future working with Eurasia.
I would say to the lady in the film, assuming she is Russian, just take a deeper look at what Russia is doing on the global scale. Look more widely and remember if Putin was one tenth as aggressive and psychopathic as the western NATO gang none of us would probably be alive today.
And be proud of your country because it is respected and trusted by hundreds of millions of people and is working flat out to stop us all from getting killed.
.
She was talking about soft power, not building alliances internationally. An example of soft power would be having the ability to raise 100,000 demonstrators when the government did something terrible or had a major power struggle. This requires organizational strength, whether in social media or financing bus trips and knowing how and when to acquire buses. One doubts that the Kremlin would even know where to begin when it comes to lots of basics of soft power. The US even had someone as president (Obama) who was said to have been a community organizer in Chicago.
The issue is not really money; the issue is that the US treats soft power seriously and Russia ignored it till after the coup in Kiev.
“building alliances internationally.” is exactly what soft power is.
To quote a previous commenter “turning enemies into neutrals and neutrals into friends”.
Here is an example just from today’s news of Russian soft, quiet power achieving a big result.
“RusVesna reports that the hitherto US-backed mixed Kurdish-Arab units under the brand of “Syrian Democratic Forces” have decided to put on Syrian Arab Army uniforms and fight terrorist forces in cooperation with Moscow and Damascus.”
Would you not agree such an outcome requires “organisational strength” of the highest order on the part of Russia?
Another example of soft, quiet power is the inevitable success (finally) of getting Nord Stream 2 built despite endless opposition, time wasting, and the placing of as many obstacles in it’s way as possible.
Russian soft power produces good results for the normal people though not perhaps the elites.
American rent-a-mob rioters achieve nothing good for the normal people, only the elites, as we see in Ukraine.
What use would Russia have for this tactic of destruction ?
The Russian approach, patient, yet strong, is clearly the better way – for the normal people .
Tomsk
Well spoken. You hit the nail. What you presented is how soft power works. Elegance brings success. This video tries to “prove” it does not, when in fact it does.
I agree with Tomsk.
NGO sabotage actions and PR stunts are not soft power.
Soft power is the abiltiy to achieve international aims and advance the national interest without sabre rattling or actually going to war.
Katherine
Tomsk, i appreciate your comments. Kudos for quoting RusVesna via FRN! Seems to me people’s concepts of ‘soft power’ are strongly in conflict on here. The ‘soft power’ that some commenters on here seem to refer to is precisely ‘unlimited cash supply + lots of nefarious subversive expertise’. The ultimate war is between good and evil, the soul and soullessness. ‘Nefarious subvserive expertise’ does not belong on the side of Good. Russia, all its faults notwithstanding, is that rusty bolt that keeps the gates of Hell shut while ghastly entities try to kick the gate down from inside. Some vermin manages to percolate out through the shabby gate, to wit: what happened in the Ukraine.
I believe that the admiration of Putin as a statesman is a signal of considerable soft power.
What is the percentage of people polled who think that Putin is the greatest statesman now alive?
That percentage is pretty high.
Including many in the USA.
Katherine
As an American I have the utmost respect and admiration for what Putin and Russia have accomplished. It’s really remarkable, especially so, when you take into account the Russia Putin inherited. On top of that the West has continued to try to throw everything and the kitchen sink at him to undermine or if ever possible overthrow him. Quite frankly I don’t see how anyone paying attention could conclude that Russia’s “soft power” is lacking in the power department. Putin has shown he’ll use the stick when absolutely necessary but, I feel certain if it weren’t for his patient restraint and use of “soft power” he’d long ago have stumbled into one of the Empire’s many tripwires. He’s disciplined enough to keep long term goals the priority and forgoes the knee-jerk reactions that might provide short-term results but ultimately prove costly. I certainly think of him as the consummate statesman and the best of the world leaders since I’ve been alive.
That said he’s human and as a human mistakes are part of the experience. I just don’t see how anyone plays the course Putin has and comes out even close. Most anyone I’ve talked to thinks highly of him and even the miniscule few who feel hostility toward Russia give him a grudging respect. After the string of rotten Presidents we’ve had, Democrat and Republican alike (two sides of the same coin), it would almost be comforting to think that Putin had some measure of influence.
In a poll conducted during the election something like 14% said they’d rather an asteroid hit than Hillary or Trump win. Everyone thought Caligula mad to have appointed his horse a senator, from where we sit it would look to be an improvement.
I am afraid this video report by Anna Sochina cannot be accepted. She has applied the old reporters trick of taking things out of context, misrepresenting facts and in the process giving a totally misleading picture, both of Russia’s initiatives and her success. The following needs to be said:
Russias “soft power” should in fact be called “quiet power”. When Putin replaced Yeltsin, he inherited an almost ruined Russia, and one that was looking into dissolution. What he achieved during his tenure is unbelievable. He transformed Russia, bringing her back to the world stage. He was lucky to have with him two world class professionals, Sergei Shoigu and Sergei Lavrov. The first transformed the Russian military into a truly professional force, as evident by it’s achievements in Syria. As for Sergei Lavrov, the international consensus is that he is Diplomat No.1. in the world, contributing to the creation of the BRICS, the Shanghai Cooperation Zone and the Eurasian Economic Union. His latest achievement is the agreement on the status of the Caspian Sea. RT and other media outlets have done a magnificent and totally unexpected media scoop on the international scene. How many times has RT been attacked by the Western media and it’s political establishments ?
Anna Sochina is pointing to the activities of the US through it’s NGO’s and other “non government” institutions, and complaining that Russia does not match such activities on the international scene. This can be taken as proof that Sochina is unqualified to make such analysis. There is no need for Russia to match the US in the same measure, as the results would be counter productive. Russia would be seen as “scared” of the US political, cultural, media and propaganda offensive, being forced to reply in equal measure and in the process being forced to apply American brutish methods. As the ancient Chinese military strategist Sun Tzu wrote in his book ‘The Art of War’, when your opponent is making mistakes, do not interrupt him.
The point is that the US is desperate to save it’s collapsing empire. It has resolved to applying brute military and political force, while at the same time using the media and NGO’s both for color revolutions and for absurd propaganda work, hoping to present the US as a “democracy”. And the results ? Even in Kiev in 2014 the NGO’s had limited success, that coup d’etat being a product of Western intelligence agencies, who basically used neo-Nazis from western Ukraine. In Russia the “success” of the NGO’s was pathetic. When Putin won the March elections, not even Soros bothered with any street “demonstrations”, knowing what the response would be.
The point is that Russia’s soft, quiet approach is the more efficient method, as Russia is applying dignity as opposed to brute force by the US. How many countries has the US invaded, how many governments has it overthrown, how many countries has it threatened with it’s military and against how many countries has it applied sanctions, making threats even against it’s European allies ?
And Russia, what has it done ? It applied a quiet diplomatic and media approach, which has given it esteem. This esteem has been enhanced by the Sochi Winter Olympics and the World Cup, which destroyed the Western anti-Russian rhetoric. Russia is now perceived as the dignified, mature state and Putin as a world statesman. As for Steven Seagal, that was a master stroke by the Russian Foreign Ministry. Seagal is a celebrity, and in the US his words carry more weight than the words of a heap of politicians.
Finally, Sochina should surf the Internet a little bit more and analyze the comments of Western readers. Nothing but praise for Russia.
Thanks, you articulated what I intended . You underlined few important things to understand
Russia deeper and see difference between two world, two cultures . Quiet approach , patience , dignity , farsighted vision .And very Firm power when needed.
Have to agree about Seagal. He definitely is no longer a “movie star” and within martial arts circles he’s considered a joke (rightly or wrongly). Surely Russia could have found someone better suited to improve US-Russian relations.
Another good point made is how the US can funnel millions of dollars into messing with Russia, but we see zero evidence of that from Russia into the West. This is why the alleged “meddling” by the Internet Research Agency and related companies was such a farce, since the amounts of money involved were a drop in the bucket compared to what the US spends and it was clear they were merely a money-making operation in any event.
I do think it would be difficult for any more overt effort by Russia to influence people in the West without running into the problems Maria Butina did. Even Maria Butina was a very low-level effort narrowly focused on improving firearms laws in Russia. But she still ended up in prison. The US is too paranoid now to allow any Russian to be seen talking to any American on any subject. Any effort made would have to be on an organizational level with Western organizations open to talking to anyone about their subjects of interest, such as science, medicine, etc.
But, in what way is Steven Seagal a joke and innapropiate to promote US-Russia relations when we are dealing with reality TV shows participants in charge as POTUS and advisors at the very WH, like Omarosa Marigault, and even Jared and Ivanka who also made an appearance at Gossip whatever’
The move seems quite appropiate…. I think Russia has done the impossible and has made use of the best of its epic patience to improve US-Russia relations, bu to no avail. I think this is why Putin has decide leave it to the show business…due that US foreign policy since Trump took charge has been a B series show….starting with his “dance of the sword” with the satraps in KSA, and following scandal after scandal on violations of and unilateral withdrawing from treaties, gross menaces, and so on….The thing is that from here where I am sitting seems an Steven Seagal movie….with the bad amongst the bads behaving damned hell….thus it is time for master of martial arts Seagl to appear and put the bully in place a bit…In this regard, related to martial arts, in what you base your statement on that he is not respected in that field?…I fear that he is much respected in the Asian world…just do a bit of inquiry….Are yo uan expert?
On the other hand, Seagal is difficult to suffer the same fate as people like Maria Butina, since he is a US citizen, and moreover a very famous one. Trying to jail him in unhealhty conditions without medical assistance would be a national, and I would say international as well, scandal, do not you think?
Finally Russia has no need to do what USA is hated all over the world for doing. Everybody, at least in Europe and LatinAmerica, who has two fingers of frontal and does not pass all its spare time in front of TV knows to this time what USAID work is about, i. e. infiltrating society to advance US interest and in case that is not possible the peaceful and economic way, go undermining stability in view of definitely overthrow the government. And even in case anyone would have any doubt about the fact that the US does not spend its money anywhere without waiting quintuplicating revenue in return, here you have The Donald extorting everybody right and left, by the side or behind…even already sending letters mafiosi style, like has been the case of some Spanish entrepeneurs investing in Iran published the other day by Sputnik…
Most people I know view Steven Seagal as a bit eccentric, at least in his public persona, to put it mildly. The younger people don’t know who the hell he is and the rest just see him as an odd, washed-up actor who used to star in sub-par action movies, the most recent of which were in the straight to DVD category. That said, I’ve always seen him favorably and wish him well in this endeavor. I just don’t see it being of any consequence good or bad.
Can’t speak for the people of Asia and their opinions concerning his bona fides as a martial artist. I have heard multiple people from the MMA world here in the U.S. say the discipline he studied in is not going to cut the mustard in real world combat. They didn’t come off as condescending, just practical. That coming from cage fighters I would think it holds some water, though, admittedly, MMA is almost exclusively BJJ, boxing, wrestling, Muay Thai primarily with tiny slivers of Judo and Karate. I would chalk that up to the efficacy of the disciplines though.
This Lady is the typical Zio Anglosaxon 5th Column .. hiding behind som.. reasonably arguments ..then to STING like a Wiper ..for her hidden Agenda
Ole C G Olesen
She certainly leaves the impression of being one. This video of hers is both inaccurate and highly suspicious.
This Lady is the typical Zio Anglosaxon 5th Column
Oh boy, comment like this one make me wonder if I am wasting my time blogging…
The Saker
Well, she certainly leaves such an impression. What we have here are typical psychological warfare methods, a little bit of truth overshadowed by a heap of misrepresentation. The most absurd part of the video was her comparison of current Russian institutions with those of the Soviet Union, stating that the Soviet Union had more success on the international field. Well, it did have success in Warsaw Pact countries. However, the Warsaw pact does not exist any more. Imagine if Russia introduced American style NGO’s in the West. The Western media and political establishments would have a field day, accusing Russia of meddling in the internal affairs of “democratic” Western countries. I am a little bit surprised you posted this video.
Well, she certainly leaves such an impression
Oh really?! Okay, I will deconstruct this one:
This Lady is the typical Zio Anglosaxon 5th Column ..
Not only is this not substantiated by anything, but this lady happens to be neither Anglo nor Zionist and, instead, she works with one of the most patriotic and clear-headed Russian alternative news outlet (PolitRussia). So, apparently, nobody there realized that she is “typical” of something which they oppose and Ole C G Olesen has more/better insight that the Ruslan Ostashko and the Russian public.
hiding behind som.. reasonably arguments
OH JEE!! How dare she “hide” behind “reasonable arguments”!! To prove her non-Anglo and non-Zionist credentials, she should have use unreasonable arguments I suppose… The funny thing is that Ole C G Olesen criticizes her for using reasonable arguments while offering NO arguments whatsoever. Is that really better?
then to STING like a Wiper ..for her hidden Agenda
Some colorful imagery (along with a no-CAPS rule violation) is no substitute for facts or logic. And putting Agenda with a capital “A” hardly makes that putative agenda real.
Bottom line: this is illogical, unsubstantiated crap which should have been removed under moderation rule #11.
Seriously, the real key problem here is this:
There are some, including Ole C G Olesen and B.F. who misconstrue ANY criticism of Russia or Putin as a betrayal, nefarious “5th column” sabotage or a hostility to Russia or Putin. This is absolutely not the case. Sochina, Ostashko and many others are often critical of Russian policies precisely because they love their country and want Russia to prevail against the forces which currently try to crush her. Flag-waving, cheer-leading and constant standing ovations are easy and can feel good, but they don’t help anybody. Speaking the truth, especially an unpleasant truth, takes much more courage and integrity.
The Saker
Saker
Perhaps to restore balance you might publish an article or two by Anna in which she demonstrates her loyalty to her country. But I do think that titling a video about Russian foreign policy efforts as “crap” which is a synonym for excrement is bound to raise questions about the motives of the author.
Keep in mind also that our western media calls Russia “crap” and worse every single day and people who actually admire the country get a bit weary of seeing this kind of rhetoric used – especially on this site which we value very much.
best wishes
I really don’t understand some of the long time posters on this board. We are not visiting some western controlled site or some basic blah blah alternative news site. This kind of material is called critical thinking among like minded supporters of Russia and the multi-polar world. This is the vineyard.
She demonstrated her loyalty quite clearly. Please try to re- read (captions) or listen again to the clip in its entirety. It is produced for the patriotic Russian audience. It’s not meant for wider digestion. Are you claiming its subversive simply because she is asking parts of the government to up its game? Every patriot should support the people who defend the interests of their country. That does not mean certain strategies should not be questioned. Dialogue should be promoted and improvements made.
http://politrussia.com/avtory/anna-sochina/
Saker
Thank you for posting the link. Unfortunately I do not speak Russian, a language not widely taught in our narrowly focussed and inadequate education system which tends to see little merit in the teaching of any foreign language least of all Russian.
However given that the point Anna is making in her video is that Russian “self promotion” is very poor and given that the audience most desperately in need of hearing the Russian point of view is the English speaking countries eg the US, does it not compromise her argument that, a few at least, of her articles are not translated into English..
Surely if she wishes to promote the Russian viewpoint -and I fully accept your saying that she does- – would it not help her case through enhanced dissemination of her viewpoint across the globe as well as benefit Russia to talk to us in the language we speak?
Perhaps translations into other languages do exist and I am being unfair but to speak only in a language only Russians use seems like a good example of the very thing she is complaining about..
best wishes
Tomsk, interesting. You use name Tomsk, a name of Russian City, therefore I was expecting you to be fluent in Russian language. Just a thought, nothing more.
The Saker
Thank you for your reply. However, I stand by what I have written. In this video Ana Sochina made a direct comparison between US and Russian activities on the international field, basically stating that Russia does not match those activities in the same measure. In other words she is asking for Russia to implement the same methods, which can only be counterproductive. Her belittlement of Russia’s soft, quiet approach is highly suspicious, as she negates the results. As I have written, this soft approach is more dignified and more efficient than the massive, NGO style American approach. Russia has spent less on the international scene and achieved more. Both the US and EU used NGO’s in Ukraine, and now the Ukrainian population regrets that coup d’etat from 2014, with Poroshenko’s “popularity” hitting rock bottom. This is one reason why not to use government sponsored NGO’s, which Russia is wisely not using. Over here where I live we have a saying:”Never use your boot to achieve something”, as you will get the opposite to what you plan. The US is proving it. When Putin won the March elections, not even Soros bothered with any street “demonstrations” in Russia, as he knew his NGO’s would achieve nothing, their aim and methods having become well known, with people refusing to fall for their subversion.
To completely missinterpret the message and attack obvious resistance to the fifth column, is unfortunately the result of the Empire’s successful psyop program against it own populace. Even most of the “woke” are unfortunately still stuck in the matrix.
The message was simple, be proactive rather than reactive. Russia has truth on their side and a genuine regard for humanity. Unless they aggressively confront the lies and devious plans of the empire and allocate all resources prudently, the world faces a scary future.
“Unless they aggressively confront the lies and devious plans of the empire ”
I don’t think doing this is really applying “soft power.”
I don’t think sophisticated PR is soft power.
I think the kinds of influence and respect that Russia is gaining through meaning engagement with many international actors to achieve actual goals and raise the general opinion and standing of Russia is soft power.
Anna Sochina’s idea of what soft power is does seem a bit superficial to me: basically, glorified PR, directed at an American audience. Much more substantial soft power effects have been reached via, say, the World Cup success than would be achieved by some kind of PR engineered by a NGO of some kind.
I would never impugn Sochina’s loyalty because I am not on board with her understanding of what soft power is and how it is exercised!
Katherine
One may ask that you do not write this blog to encourage an entourage of sycophants, but rather to engage in debate with people whose opinions vary sometimes. At least this gives you the opportunity to change their minds?
I do not understand why Russians need soft power?
I do not remember rolls royce ads, and everyone knows about that car.
Russia is a serious country with people who did not sold souls. they do not need any soft power and masked talk to others how to live. imitating western selling of cans of fog to promote legitimate and fair interests makes no sense.
Sanjin
Soft, quiet power always brings results. Nobody likes a bully.
I have to chime in to what BF said in his comment. I stopped watching the video about half a way through. It gave me an impression of total anti-government (read anti-Putin propaganda). She was trying to be very convincing, but I just did not buy any of what she said.
Also, what’s wrong with Russia using “soft response” to the Western “humanistic” propaganda?. Seagal made few movies on the subject of environmental protection, one of them being “On Dangerous Ground”, if I remember correctly. He is also well controlled and soft spoken, which makes him a perfectly effective weapon in driving the Western propagandists nuts.
Anonius
Yes, this video is indeed anti-Government and anti-Putin propaganda, the intent being to make Putin appear weak and inefficient on the international scene, which is absurd. The methods used here are well known. A little bit of truth covered by a heap of misrepresentation. Overall, this video is nothing but an inversion of the truth.
Soft power this, soft power that.
Judging by the all-out paranoia and hysterical temper tantrums of the West’s criminal ”Elites” and their imbecilic media outlets due to Russia, I’d say the latter entity is doing pretty damn well. Sure, it would be immensely awesome and pleasurable if Russia could stage an annual song contest with a 100% unambiguous, anti-Western — Pindos, Euro-trash, wannabe Euro-trash — bias; a veritable carnival of excessive gloating at the expense of Western criminal statesmen, bogus intelligentsia, Zio-gays, Cultural Marxists, and all their ”post-industrial” nonsense. Great entertainment? Hell, yes (I’d gladly submit a fistful of contributions and also be volunteering to assist with its broadcast). Necessary? Not at all.
I think Russia is being given far less than her due for her most dignified achievements, such as Chechnya, Syria, Crimea, the FIFA World Cup, etc. All of it is having an impact indeed, and the West — for all its buggered ”soft power” — only rages and fumes in response. Why should Russia waste time and money on suchlike sub-standard, phoney emotionalism? Especially in view of the obvious consequences in the form of suddenly ”credible” slanders to the effect that ”Russia is scared witless” ?
Bottom line: Russia has finally been blessed with a strong, extraordinarily competent government. The West, on the other hand, is drowning in debt, avarice, and decadence while it is being consumed by outright imbecilification including literally all levels of Western society.
I enjoyed Anna Sochina’s video and think she made some interesting points. Thank you for the translation Eugenia and I hope you do some more as I can’t find any other videos by Anna Sochina with subtitles. I’m irritated by a number of people leaving comments referring to her as ‘lady’. I haven’t seen Ruslan Ostashko referred to as ‘gentleman’. The comments following Ruslan Ostashko’s videos often don’t refer to him at all, they just take off as an interesting discussion. The best comments following Anna Sochina’s video were made by people who were open to the points she was making, instead of being distracted by gender.
A society were the word “lady” is sexist has gone totally insane.
Besides, Ostashko is most definitely a gentleman and Sochina a lady
Thank God Russia is a gender – differentiated society.
The Saker
“A society were the word “lady” is sexist has gone totally insane.”
Context and tone are all.
In an earlier thread I was referred to as “my lady.” I did not consider this a neutral form of address.
I very much doubt that I would have been referred to a “my lady” if I had been agreeing with the poster.
Perhaps in the future I’ll post as Chuck, to avoid being addressed as “my lady”!
Katherine
In an earlier thread I was referred to as “my lady.” I did not consider this a neutral form of address.
Indeed, “my lady” is just about the highest form of respect and admiration which a man can express towards a woman. There are lots of women out there and, alas, very few worthy of being addressed (or thought of) as a “lady”. The same goes for men only a minority of which live up to the concept of “gentleman”.
This being said, I tend to extend an assumption of “being a lady” towards women I interact with (unless the external appearance clearly indicates that this is not the case). But if a women asks me not to address her as “lady”, I immediately and gladly comply since that request by itself indicates that I was mistaken in my assumption.
We live in a very, very sad world indeed.
The Saker
“Indeed, “my lady” is just about the highest form of respect and admiration which a man can express towards a woman.”
I don’t want to be argumentative but I also do not like to misunderstood or talked down to.
As I said, context and tone are everything.
If I were addressed as “my lady” as a matter of course on this blog, and by that particular poster, it would be a different matter. However, that is not the case.
I don’t find the world to be “sad” because I notice nuances of tone.
Cheers, Katherine
@thesaker
LOL…..good one and true one.
Katherine,
You would have been referred to as ‘My lady’ whether you agreed with me or not, agreement or disagreement has nothing to do with good manners. You are not the only lady on this blog who I have addressed as ‘my lady’.
Auslander
It would be a big help if the translation of what she is saying could be posted in written form, so one could read it a one’s chosen pace and have time to assimilate the content. She speaks very fast and for those who can’t undersand spoken Russian, the subtitled translation goes by too fast. When it comes to conveying delicate information. wtitten language beats spoken language any time
I sincerely appreciate the publication of the video podcasts of Politicorussia.com, both for their content and for my own use, as I am trying to pick up some of the Russian language – it is my firm conviction that one can learn a language more quickly when one is interested in the subjects/topics expressed by the native speaker which clearly the case here. Regretfully both Anna and Ostashko speak way too fast. It seems to me they make their presentations by reading from a screenscript that scrolls out subsequent sentences with such a speed that it is hard for them to keep the pace. So it is just a matter of reducing the speed of scrolling the text.
As for my appreciation for the content of Anna’s presentation I am a bit in the middle between those who see it as undermining Russia’s ‘soft power’ and those who consider that Russia’s ‘soft power’ is evident and does not need to replicate American practices.
Given that Anna compares American and Russian ‘soft power’ (cultural) initiatives negatively for Russia, perhaps one should keep in mind that the examples she gives for the Russian side (mainly cultural performances, exhibitions, etc.) are aimed at a more sophisticated public compared to the American ‘crap’.
I think that if Russia put subtitles or dubbed (many Americans hate to read) some of their movies and put them on Youtube for free. Many people enjoy war movies from different countries and there must be many great old Russian war movies. A lot of US soft power comes from Hollywood’s favorable view of US. It surprises me that other countries, not just Russia make more of an effort to utilize cinema . Of course there is always the danger that people will fall for their own propaganda as Andrei Martyanov made so eloquently in his book Losing Military Supremacy.
They are already on Youtube…
You can start with this great one, harsh, bnut really beautiful, I really love the director
“9th Company” ( on last weeks in Afghanistan…. )
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RHqCsR1ZEpU
“Svezda” ( “The Star”, on a scouts team heroic operation on WWII….)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcGC2JDh-pc
“Seventeen Moments of Spring”
( spionage epic series on the last days of the III Reich and shenanigans by the US to take over Germany…long but trepidant…You could easily find the rest of episodes…)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WZhgXs_iFRs
They all have in common that they show the harshness and crudeness of war but presented in such a sensitive and human way that you find it even poetic….
Soft power at its best….
Soft power is ambiguous concept and so with the purpose to deceive. It is much more then State Info War . It is a instrument of deception in the aggressive hybrid war that USA launched against independent states .
Soft power is a first stage of the war that looks like aid and help from the friendly Big Brother .
It is a American Trojan horse . If regime is changed , job is done. If not next step is economic sanction . Last stage are missiles and bombing .
So Russia is now Troy ( defending itself) and point is only not to be deceived . It will make no sense to copy Greeks and build “Danaans horse”.
Soft power is culture. It is the ability of a culture to radiate an attraction to people of other cultures and have them feel attracted to the benefits they can receive in their personal lives from that culture. Soft power is a form of cultural persuasiveness and is not directly translatable into governmental policies or military policy. Soft power implies some form of cultural superiority or hegemony on the part of the nation radiating it. Great empires thrive by their soft power. This thread displays, in my opinion, a lot of confusion as to exactly what soft power is. This is very understandable. Western Europe has been radiating soft power for a long time. But it is not reducible to capitalism. In fact a lot of the strength of western capitalism lies in the fact that capitalism has been a parasitic growth inside European cultural soft power and in turn makes it difficult to see European soft power as distinct from capitalism. It is my opinion that if an individual was born after 1960 or thereabouts it is very easy for that person to have no experience of European soft power. To not know what it really is. To illustrate; German culture radiated soft power up until the end of world war one. Then their culture was destroyed and even the Germans today can be forgiven for not understanding their own cultural soft power. If a thing dies before you are born how can you be expected to appreciate it. The same with France. French culture had a ton of soft power up until the Nazi occupation. French culture never recovered from that and now its soft power has very little attraction to others. The same with England and USA. Both nations had a lot of cultural soft power prior to 1980. From that date onward with Reagan and Thatcher their soft power has been so distorted as to appear non existent. It is an issue of the attraction of a culture to people outside that cultural realm. Soft power makes hegemony easy. That is why it is called soft power. With all due respect to the wonderful spiritual progress of modern Russia, who can say that Russian culture has yet mastered the art of making non Russians feel that they need to bathe themselves in Russia’s culture. As far as I can see Russia has yet to develop a magnetic cultural attraction to non Russians. It seems to me that the lady in the Video has the intelligence to sense this and would like to change that situation. Easier said than done.
Very insightful comment.
The idea of culture is not monolithic.
Can anyone dispute the incomparable value and “pull” of Russia’s high culture?
Music, dance, drama, Baryshnikov, Nureyev, Pushkin, Tschaikovsky, etc. etc.
But perhaps soft power (nowadays), as defined by Snow Leopard, depends more on a country’s popular culture.
Does Russia project a sense of its popular culture that attracts others to join in? Does it have such a popular culture to start with?
I certainly imagine that opportunities abounded to start making this kind of cultural inroad, esp. with the world’s younger populations, at Sochi and during the World Cup.
Dostoievsky, Gorki…Rimsky-Korsakoff, Prokofiev, Rachmaninoff….truly soft immortal power….
“Indeed, “my lady” is just about the highest form of respect and admiration which a man can express towards a woman.”
I don’t want to be argumentative but I also do not like to misunderstood or talked down to.
As I said, context and tone are everything.
If I were addressed as “my lady” as a matter of course on this blog, and by that particular poster, it would be a different matter. However, that is not the case.
I don’t find the world to be “sad” because I notice nuances of tone.
Cheers, Katherine
Best American-Russian combo soft power ever.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yV4wyxHMY9I
(Russian video)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qsb1GIhhJfg
(Somewhat shorter; better sound quality.)
You can cut to the marvelous ending, with Cliburn and the Russian conductor falling into each other’s arms after the stupendous performance. The intense interplay between them in the third movement is inspiring.
The camera briefly picks up Khrushchev and I think Molotov in the audience.
Katherine
Not Molotov for sure,…may be Anastás Mikoyán….
Yes, I guess I meant Mikoyan.
Katherine
Soft power as a figure of speech is in fact oxymoron-contradictory terms are linked together.
Soft means mellow and faint , tender , passive.
Power means opposite : active, hard , control, authority etc.
Why oxymoron instead of rational and more precise term ?
Because it is handy tool of deception you can play with it as you like it.
Oxymoron can mean many things in the same time : innocent and praiseworthy culture as well as malicious instrument of hybrid war.
I believe the term was coined by Joseph Nye.
Katherine
Examples of Very Successful Soft Power:
Sochi Olympics
World Cup
Russian Orchestra playing in liberated and de-mined Palmyra historic site
These were enormous successes and carry forward for years and decades in the minds (and sometimes the hearts) of millions of non-Russians.
Using Chechen Military Police in Syria is soft power. They are Sunni, the best fighters proven in two wars, but are soothing to the Syrian civilians, a psychological (soft power) of the military.
Many of Russian medical staffing in Syria are women practitioners. This is soft power used with civilians, for most Syrians in need are women and children and old people. The Syrian men are in the army or dead and wounded. Thus, the humanitarian assistance and medical services are soft power.
Russia worked for over a five months to help with their special equipment (the ship called Yantar) to search for and if possible rescue the Argentinian submarine lost in the Atlantic. They were the first nation to offer assistance and the last to abandon the search in the South Atlantic.
Obviously, this was enormous effort and soft power.
RR, B.F., Augusto, Tomsk, Katherine, Ole C G Olesen
Thanks. You people essentially articulated my reservations about this accusatory video rant.
Laughed out loud, when she mentioned the CCCP.
Indeed, the seeds of what the the old Soviets have sown starting as early as the 1920s are clearly coming to fruit in the Soviet States of Weimerika.
Now that is soft power.
Just as the Republicans have no ammo in this game, Putin has none as well, aside from nudging the machine to perform better economically. Conserving what?
The cultural revolution in the States is over. Cultural Marxism is running all the imaginable institutions.
Let us face it, it is time to water the tree of freedom.
Russia has nothing to sell the West aside from it’s natural resources(women and newborns incuded), plus it doesn’t run the Federal Reserve.
What Russia could do is to arm the burgeoning nationalist movement in the west.
We would be thankful for that.
bandana
Besides natural resources and some pretty fancy high tech, Russia has to offer the Eurasian Economic Union, the Shaghai Cooperation organization and the BRICS. It is also a huge market.
Do not forget Russian literature, which attracted the most sensitive intellectuals in Europe to visit the country of the Soviets even when the the smoke of the revolution’s fire had not yet been completely extinguished….
Timely article, by now I think the West has realized they don’t have a military option against Russia and even in other parts of the world their military options are becoming quite limited, so I expect they’ll be increasingly focusing on soft power strategies and fifth column activities, with military activities serving as a crutch for such strategies.
anon12309846
That is true. The West cannot destroy Russia militarily, nor could it remove Putin with NGO subversion. The West is now preparing for the post-Putin period,. recruiting candidates and Fifth Column activists. However, the question is if the West has enough time, bearing in mind Putin will be in power for almost six years. I think not.
It is inconceivable that Putin is not planning carefully for his succession.
In six years he will still be mentally capable, barring unforeseen circumstances.
Putin will be an eminence grise in the RF for the rest of his life.
Think I.
Katherine
US’/the west’s soft power = the devil’s soft power. Hell cannot be made to look pretty, that is why the road to hell has to be made to look very pretty, to seduce the multitudes. The road to hell has become almost irresistably pretty and it looks natural and unavoidable and so darn cool. An ever greater effort has to be made to resist further ‘progreess’ down that road. And then you will be branded “uncool.” Russia is uncool. I want it to stay that way forever.
Well, Putin “gets” soft power. He’s attending the Austrian Foreign Minister’s wedding. (Although depending on the specifics, this could also be an expression of hard power possibly?) Remember when every Russian medal winner from the Olympics received a new BMW? Or when he performed tricks with his Akita dog for the Japanese media? So why is he the only one in office doing so?
The point of this video evades me.
Germany has its Goethe institutes. France has the Institut francais, etc. Sure, such institutes won’t prevent a Maidan revolution. But that isn’t their job. Their job is to raise people’s interest in a country. Some of those people will start to learn the language or become involved in trade. Some may just get a more positive image of the country – what will translate in different political positions.
Such institutes have long term goals. There are embassies, secret services and other organizations to deal with the short term.
It’s apparent to me that the whole Affaire Seagal is for domestic (Russian) consumption. He will not influence Americans one way or another, because we don’t care about him. The most troubling part of her video, for me, was the implication that Mrs. Ovechkin wants her children to be American. Deeply disappointing, and I think a symbol of everything that is still wrong with the Russian inferiority complex. I hope Alex gets a clue and convinces her otherwise, but that’s just too much to hope for, isn’t it? When are Russians going to wake up? Or is general intelligence inversely proportioned to wealth over there? Seems like it.
PS all the folks calling Anna an agent of the Dark Forces or whatever, did we watch the same video? I know I’m a biased observer (love you Anna!) but seriously, calm down. She’s frustrated that Russia is apparently incapable of protecting her own People in Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Latvia, etc. You should be frustrated too … it’s a tragedy.
Andrew
Russia must be forbearing and cautious to avoid much bigger (world) tragedy . We all have to be patient . Instead of being frustrated , we have to trust ourselves and trust Russia . They are doing good and important things lately for the entire world.
This is Planetary Time of troubles (Смутное время ) and Russia is first defending itself , but showing and helping other independent people the way out of chaos. Way out it is not going to be easy, cheep and fast. Western Soft power is advertising and propaganda. Truth and justice are real soft power. .
Andrew, how would you propose that Russia should protect her own in the Baltics and other ex Soviet republics? Please give some examples.
I fail to see how NGOs that the video suggests would achieve that. Who would give them the voice outside of Russia?
She is good. Love these professional Russians and their sarcasm.
The “Russian Faith” website has a rich blend of Russian history and Orthodox Christianity.
https://russian-faith.com/
I understand the security concerns that RF has, with all these attempt by NGOs to “colo-revolutionize” it. However, it really needs to simplify obtaining a tourist visa. I recently visited the county but the administrative process that one has to go through is torturous.
I would love to go back and visit other parts of Russia, they say that the country is on the larger side. However reapplying for the visa is a definite let down.
As a side note, having signs in Latin script (I understand the sensitivity here too), maybe via an electronic/virtual way, would help in navigating the geography.
The visa system is that way for a purpose. Want to go to Russia, make an effort. Cannot make the effort, i.e. not interested enough (= you don’t really care), that’s cool, too. Stay away, we won’t miss you. Only those things in life matter that you have to make an effort to obtain.
I think she’s behind the times – I suppose there might be 50% of Americans that don’t like Steven Seagul but she’s not talking about ‘soft power’ to gather those who ALREADY support Russia – like us, here at Saker’s – she’s talking about placating and ‘feeding’ the idiots that still watch the idiot box – TV –
I don’t think Russia should be feeding the slow pokes that aren’t into the internet alternative media – except maybe in the countries like the Baltics where Russian language is being banned –
The folks that are still thinking negative about Putin – will always be slow pokes – they have to be taken care of by the folks like us – that are already on board – and know the Real Deal.