💥 The Battle for Ukraine Wages On
Here's what you need to know for today in 5:13 minutes
Today’s Big Story
Since the start of the war on February 24th, Russia has gone back and forth as to whether they are willing to negotiate, but yesterday, high-level officials from Russia and Ukraine met at the Ukraine-Belarus border. Russia continued to insist that a ceasefire requires “demilitarization” and Ukraine continued to push for more military aid and ascension into Western bodies like the European Union. The talks ended without a resolution and the fighting has intensified - particularly in Kharkiv (Ukraine’s second-largest city) and Kyiv (the capital) which are currently the main battlefronts.
📯 What’s Going On?
Ukraine’s unexpectedly stiff and brave resistance has complicated Russia’s efforts to seize the country. However, as fighting intensifies, the magnitude of catastrophe also increases. Russia moved into another major Ukrainian city, Kharkiv, which has opened up a deadly chapter because civilian infrastructure and civilian areas are increasingly being hit as a result of these barrages.
Here are some major developments from the last 24 hours:
The U.N. is looking for aid to help over 50,000 people who have left Ukraine as attacks intensify. They will also ask for nearly $2 billion in donations for Ukraine's refugees.
Yesterday, Belarus hosted the first face-to-face talks between Russian and Ukrainian officials since the Russian invasion began, but they ended without a resolution.
On Monday, President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine urged the European Union to admit Ukraine immediately into the bloc in response to Russia’s invasion.
The value of the ruble has plunged more than 25 percent as Western sanctions shook Russia’s economy.
🔍 What Does this Mean?
Many on the left believe that the recent rounds of Western sanctions are shaking the foundations of Russia's economy, and that in many ways, the Kremlin has also lost control of the narrative around this war.
Many on the right continue to steer clear of condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, support the decision to abstain from a vote on a U.S. resolution to condemn Russia in the United Nations Security Council, arguing that picking sides will only lead to an escalation of violence.
"Russian media is simply not portraying the war. To date, they’re claiming that the only fighting that’s happening is around the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics, the proxies that Russia recognized, and they’re not showing fighting across the country, they’re not showing any Russian casualties, and rather than showing Russian footage, they’re trying to take Ukrainian footage out of context and use that to portray the war. And even then, they’re facing large backlash from the population, and the early stirrings of what may cohere into a true anti-war movement." - Vox
"The decisions by the United States, Britain and the European Union restricting the Russian Central Bank’s access to much of its $643 billion in foreign currency reserves have undone much of the Kremlin’s careful efforts to soften the impact of potential sanctions. As the day began [28 February], Russia’s currency lost as much as a quarter of its value within hours. Scrambling to stem the decline, the Russian Central Bank more than doubled its key interest rate, banned foreigners from selling Russian securities and ordered exporters to convert into rubles most of their foreign-currency revenues. It closed the Moscow stock exchange for the day because of the “developing situation.” - The New York Times
"If India takes a stand one way or the other, it risks either alienating its Western partnerships or pushing Russia closer to longtime adversaries like Pakistan, which has enjoyed warmer ties with Moscow in recent years. India’s close ties with Russia go back to the 1950s. Although India officially had a policy of nonalignment during the Cold War, it heavily relied on Moscow for weapons and economic support. The relationship evolved into a close defense alliance under Mr. Modi, which has become even more important as India’s relations with China soured to its lowest point in decades." - The Wall Street Journal
"Beijing has trod a cautious diplomatic line on the crisis and refused to call it an “invasion” or condemn the actions of Russia, its close ally. While most nations in Asia rallied to support Ukraine, China has continued to denounce sanctions against Russia and blamed the United States and its allies for provoking Moscow. - Al Jazeera
💭 Why Should I Care?
Control the Narrative, Control the World
According to several media reports, the way Putin began spinning this war (through the Kremlin and the state-run media) was by trying to draw a sharp distinction between the Ukrainian population and their government. They believed that through this strategy, the Ukrainian population will greet Russia as liberators (because they are essentially Russian people) and see Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s government as being neo-Nazi. At home, the original pitch to the Russian public was that this is not a war against Ukraine, but actually a very targeted intervention to get rid of Zelenskyy’s neo-Nazi regime.
But this messaging failed, because Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who is Jewish, had revealed during a trip to Jerusalem in 2020 that three of his great uncles died in the Holocaust during World War II. Many other Ukrainians lost family members in WWII as well. So Putin’s message abruptly changed into “Ukraine is committing genocide against Russian people in Luhansk and Donetsk,” which is a confusing message, especially if you’re also arguing that you’re all essentially the same Russian people.
Globally, most news media, including Russia’s Nobel-winning newspaper - Novaya Gazeta - continue to call this Putin’s war, suggesting this is not about Russia but about Putin and the small circle of people who dominate the country. If you look at them, they are essentially the last gasp of Soviet elites, the people who didn’t just have their early childhood education in the Soviet times, but also their early career experiences. These are people who genuinely believe the West is hostile, who genuinely believe that the West is denying Russia its proper place in the world, that it’s trying to hold Russia down and trying to undermine the regime.
Have questions or comments about today’s newsletter?
🙋Ask Away!
And in case you’re interested to learn more…
Real time, on-ground reporting from NYT correspondent Sabrina Tavernise through the Daily’s latest podcast (28 minutes)
✨ Below the Fold
As if the news isn’t enough to keep us all on the edge lately, I carelessly partook of a coffee cupping session at the Starbucks near my office and as of writing this newsletter, it’s 4 AM and I’m wide awake. I imagine many of you that have been following the news might also be feeling overwhelmed and helpless. I was actually just directed to an internet resource on how to help if you feel helpless about Ukraine.
And this is a strange thing to write but I feel like I’m also watching a lot of hero stories on TV in my free time. Zero Dark Thirty is my absolute favourite. I re-watched it recently and it felt like there was a way to get to solidarity and justice in a world of complication and infighting. For someone who wants to believe so vehemently about the need to transcend “us vs. them” thinking and embrace nuance, I am amazed I’ve found a story like this so captivating no matter how many times I watch it. Jessica Chastain looks like a dream. Here’s one of the many great scenes of the film. I hope in some odd way it’s comforting and healing.
💌What are you talking about, reading, watching, cooking, listening to lately? Let me know. I’ll read every letter sent and maybe even write a below the fold post about it.
“I do not want my picture in your offices: the President is not an icon, an idol or a portrait. Hang your kids' photos instead, and look at them each time you are making a decision.”
– Volodymyr Zelenskyy (President of Ukraine)
