10 Aug, 2023 20:31

Kiev’s transgender spokesperson ends boycott of CNN

The outlet has removed a reference to “Western mercenaries” after a former US journalist representing Ukraine’s army demanded an apology

The transgender American war correspondent who was selected last month to run the Ukrainian military’s English-language propaganda operation has called off a boycott of CNN after apparently persuading the media outlet to cease referring to foreign fighters in the country as “mercenaries.”

Sarah Ashton-Cirillo ended the boycott campaign on Thursday afternoon, hours after it began, citing CNN’s “rapid response” to her public complaint earlier in the day. The network revised an article published last week that had included a reference to “Western mercenaries,” changing their description to “Western foreign fighters.”

Ashton-Cirillo had posted a video message on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, denouncing CNN and its diplomatic editor, Nic Robertson. “Nic Robertson, you referred to us as foreign mercenaries. There’s nothing further from the truth, nor further from the legal definition.”

The former freelance journalist, who joined Ukraine’s military last year, also chided Robertson for failing to respond to emails complaining about his choice of words. “Based on your terminology of us as Western mercenaries, which has clearly put our lives in danger, along with the fact that your colleagues decided to show … rotting bodies of Ukrainian soldiers in the sun for the world to see, I have to recommend that nobody in the Armed Forces of Ukraine works with CNN in any capacity until we’ve received an apology directly from you Nic, as well as the CNN production team on the ground here,” Ashton-Cirillo said.

Ironically, Ashton-Cirillo was criticized in October 2022 for recording a video of herself with a dead body visible in the background as she reported on a missile strike in Kiev. Last week, Ashton-Cirillo caused another stir on social media by referring to Russian soldiers as inhuman. “We are human, and those guys most definitely aren’t,” the Ukrainian spokesperson said.

Nevertheless, Ashton-Cirillo claimed to take the high road in condemning CNN: “Ultimately, we cannot have our lives at risk to spite your desire to have clicks and views. Free press matters. Ethical journalism matters more.”

https://www.rt.com/news/581123-ukraine-army-propagandist-ends-cnn-boycott/

>>19340013

ThatsnotableDeSantis thought he could get away with a shadow campaign

11 Aug, 2023 13:48

Kiev reveals it has spy network in Russia

President Zelensky’s top aide predicted that the number of “incidents” in the neighboring country will only grow

Ukrainian intelligence services have established a sprawling spy network in Russia, Mikhail Podoliak, the top aide to Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky, said as he promised that the neighboring country will come under an increasing number of drone strikes.

In an interview with Ukrainian 24 TV released on Friday, Podoliak claimed that Kiev’s Main Directorate of Intelligence (GUR) and Security Service (SBU) “have quite an efficient network in Russia.”

“I think that the number of incidents [there] will be growing,” he said, referring in particular to a powerful explosion at Zagorsk Optical-Mechanical Plant in the town of Sergiyev Posad on Wednesday, which killed one and injured 80 people.

The Russian authorities said the explosion took place in a facility that produces pyrotechnics. While investigators are still looking into the matter, they denied that the incident was caused by a drone attack. One source told RIA Novosti source that a “violation of technical procedures” was to blame for the blast.

Podoliak also promised that Russia would see an increase in the number of drone attacks. However, he shied away from taking responsibility for the strikes, blaming “unidentified drones” instead. Russian officials, however, have been much more specific in identifying the culprit, accusing Ukraine on numerous occasions of staging “terrorist attacks” on civilian targets in Moscow, the Crimean Peninsula, and elsewhere.

On the subject of drone strikes, Podoliak claimed that Ukraine “does not wage war on Russia’s territory,” suggesting that the recent incidents there were the results of Russia “destroying itself.”

“We can only provide additional advisory services to those people who are discussing how Russia can be destroyed by Russians,”Podoliak said, adding that this falls under the purview of intelligence operatives.

Podoliak’s comments come after Andrey Yusov, a spokesman for Ukraine’s Main Directorate of Intelligence, issued a statement on Thursday confirming that Kiev’s Shaman special forces battalion was indeed engaged in subversive activities in Russia.

Earlier, The Times reported that members of the Ukrainian unit had been operating in the neighboring country for more than a year, seeking to assassinate senior Russian commanders and attack infrastructure facilities.

https://www.rt.com/russia/581153-ukraine-spy-ring-russia/

11 Aug, 2023 12:14

Zelensky holds ‘closed talks’ with top British generals

The discussions took place amid growing Western disappointment with the slow progress of Kiev’s counteroffensive

Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky says he has held talks with the UK's top military leadership and has stated that more weapons are being readied for delivery to Kiev.

In a video address published to his Telegram channel on Wednesday, Zelensky described the meeting as “closed, but productive.” He did not, however, elaborate on any specific details of the talks, stating only that new packages of military aid are being prepared for Ukraine, including air defense systems.

His statement came on the same day that the head of his office, Andrey Ermak, said representatives of the Ukrainian army had also held talks with the US military, specifically with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley.

“On behalf of Vladimir Zelensky, a meeting was held in the format of a videoconference between representatives of the military-political leadership of Ukraine and the United States, dedicated to the situation at the frontline as well as defense cooperation,”wrote Ermak in a Telegram post, calling it “a very substantive and fundamental conversation.”

He said that Ukrainian commanders briefed US officials on the current situation on the battlefield and reported on the offensive actions of Kiev’s troops in key sectors.

Ermak noted that during the talks, the Ukrainian side emphasized the key needs of its forces as well as the need to increase the defenses of Ukrainian cities and infrastructure to repel Russian air strikes.

The US officials reassured Kiev that it will receive support “for as long as it is needed,”the presidential aide said.

Ukrainian officials have consistently been demanding more and more military support from the US and its allies – even more so since it launched its much-anticipated counteroffensive earlier this summer.

Meanwhile, a number of Western officials have expressed concern that Kiev’s counterattack may have already run out of steam and will most likely fail to achieve its goal of pushing Russian forces back to Ukraine’s 1991 borders.

In an interview with the Washington Post published on Thursday, Polish President Andrzej Duda stated that Ukraine needs significantly more military assistance to have a chance at changing the balance of the conflict and getting the upper hand.

Moscow, in turn, has repeatedly urged the West to stop “pumping” weapons into Ukraine, warning that continued military aid will only prolong the conflict and inflict more destruction upon the country, without changing the final outcome.

(Zelensky looks pretty scared these days)

https://www.rt.com/russia/581149-zelensky-uk-military-leaders/