Yulia, what is the “common background and cultural context” of Chechens, Dagestanis, Bashkirs, Yakuts, Chuvashs, Circassians, Buryats, and Ingush besides the fact that they were enslaved by Russia?

Erica Marat Thanks for pointing that out in my piece Erica Marat thenation.com/article/world/…

Так все таки что важнее: «хватит кормить Кавказ» или «общий бэкграунд»?

Usually what follows after “you all are part of the Russian world” statements is “we saved you from your own backwardness”.

Preventing Ukraine from striking Russia is reminiscent of preventing Ukraine from receiving lethal weapons after 2014. Too much emphasis on what Russia can do in reaction, too little trust in the Ukrainians’ will to resist.

And of course Elon has boosted posts by the Kremlin-paid TENET Media, actually just ten days ago.

Assumptions that Russian will survive within its territory presume that it’ll either remain autocratic and continue to repress Indigenous nations (likely) or will finally figure out federative rights for its subjects and will be able to pull off inclusive democracy (unlikely).

На мой взгляд никакая новая нормальная Россия будущего не возможна без победы Украины . В отличие от Юли Навальной , я считаю , что народы России имеют право на самоопределение и должны иметь право выйти из состава России по своему желанию и Россия не вправе их за это убивать.

The peoples of Russia in a normal Russia of the future must have the right to self-determination and secession from Russia. And yes, no new normal Russia is possible without Ukraine’s victory in the war of aggression!

Right on. The ‘sanewashing’ of Donald Trump:

RT and Sputnik are not media organizations. They never were. They are Russian government agencies designed to game our commitment to free media. The sanctions against them are not a freedom of speech matter. It's a national security measure against a foreign adversary.

Remember Navalnaya’s post where she said “We’ll find those who want to artificially decolonize Russia despite the shared background & common culture?” Tons of ethnic minority people from Russia are disagreeing with her in the comments – and I translated a few. A thread ⬇️ 1/11

Non-Russians from Russia’s poorest regions make us the highest ratios of casualties in the war in Ukraine. Moscow —the lowest. Source: Vyushkova, M., & Sherkhonov, E. (2023). Russia’s Ethnic Minority Casualties of the 2022 Invasion of Ukraine. Inner Asia, 25(1), 126-136.

Any good reads on what’s going on here?

We have known for years that the Kremlin runs its own influencers' network internationally. But this is the first time (?) we get a hint of what might be the scope of the network: 2800 influencers (‘politicians, bloggers, journalists…’) in 81 countries, 21% based in the US.

i understand how unsettling, disturbing and embarrassing it is to realize that your entire view of russia, russians and russian culture has been shaped by centuries of ruthless imperial propaganda. i truly get it. i used to be brainwashed too.

The plight of North Asians under the Russian colonial rule is close to me personally. My paternal grandfather was Kalmak and the men from his village were confused with Kalmyks under Stalin, faced prosecution (long story). Two of my grandmothers were Tatars. 1/2

The Kyrgyz side of my family tree received independence from Russia. The tatars never did and I long for stronger connection with that heritage. The Kalmaks continued to fear connection with Kalmyks, although there’s a deep desire to trace joint history. 2/2

#goals for when I retire from academia