Francis Scarr

@fscarr.bsky.social

Watching Russia and its media for BBC Monitoring

Russian large channels have stayed almost silent for the past two days about the downing of the airliner over Chechnya. This time it seems a directive was issued to stay quiet. The only exception was one channel today, which called it "just another statistic of war."

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Jackson Hinkle popped up on Russian state TV last night Described as a "member of the US Communist Party", he’s been busy helping the Russian Communists send a shipment of "humanitarian aid" to Donbas The correspondent suggested that most of it is going to soldiers on the frontline

Clearly irked by suggestions that the Oreshnik missile isn't all it's talked up to be, Putin flippantly proposes a "technological duel" in which the West puts its most advanced air defence systems in Kyiv and tries to repel an Oreshnik strike

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In front of a banner from the 155th naval infantry brigade which he says he was given as a gift, Putin says Russian forces are advancing "along the whole frontline every day" in Ukraine

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Chechen special forces commander Apti Alaudinov has become an honorary professor of South-West State University in Kursk Alaudinov earlier became an unofficial spokesman for the Russian operation to repel Ukraine's incursion into Kursk, constantly claiming non-existent Russian successes there

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Brief updated thoughts on RF in Syria. Russian navy seems to be parked 8-13km off Tartus concerned about ship vulnerability. Russian forces are assembling in Khmeimim airbase for what looks like a drawdown with several An-124 having made pick ups there in recent days. 1/

Russian state TV talk show host Anatoly Kuzichev: “I want to remind you that Russia has always believed, it has always believed – this is not just the position of the last couple of days - that it is Syrians who should determine the future and form of their country”

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The illiberal anti-Western regime of Bidzina Ivanishvili in Georgia announced that it will not initiate negotiations to join the European Union until the end of 2028 and will refuse any EU budgetary grants.