Ukraine Without Hype

This episode is dedicated both to Ukraine's Independence Day and the 6th-month anniversary of the war that threatens that independence. In our news round-up we cover: 00:00:45 - The combat update, including the long-awaited kinetic phase of the Kherson Offensive. 00:19:00 - Russia has been staging continuous provocations at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant that threaten a meltdown. The IAEA has arrived on the site to carry out an inspection. 00:30:45 - Morgue workers have managed to leak information back to Kyiv about the number of dead Mariupol. One out of Four people were killed. 00:34:05 - The daughter of Russian fascist philosopher Alexandr Dugin was assassinated in Moscow, theories abound over how 00:43:40 - The last leader of the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev passed away at the age of 91. To be generous, he had a controversial legacy. 00:45:35 - Ukraine marks Independence Day with a storm of Russian missiles, and Russia's longed-for parade in Kyiv 00:49:28 - Reflections on 6 months since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion Twitter Anthony: @Bartaway Romeo: @RomeoKokriatski Ukraine Without Hype: @HypeUkraine Patreon https://www.patreon.com/UkraineWithoutHype Music Hey Sokoli (Traditional)

1 Sep 20221h 6min

In a brief news update, Russia focuses its efforts in Donbas on the Donetsk suburb of Pisky, which guards the way to the vital strategic Ukrainian fortress-city of Avdiivka. On the Kherson front, the Russian army pours into the region in order to forestall a Ukrainian offensive, but by doing so put themselves in an extremely logistically precarious position. This is helped by Ukraine, somehow, blowing up a Russian Air Force base in Crimea. Then, we speak with Vladyslav Starodubtsev, a Democratic Socialist activist in the organization Sotsialnyi Rukh, or Social Movement. We discuss the new changes to Ukraine's labor laws that severely hurt worker's rights in a time when maintaining stability is even more important than ever. What sacrifices are actually necessary and useful in war and who should bear them? Vladyslav's Contacts and Projects Twitter: @VlStarodubtsev Sotsialnyi Rukh: https://rev.org.ua/ Twitter Anthony: @Bartaway Romeo: @RomeoKokriatski Ukraine Without Hype: @HypeUkraine Patreon https://www.patreon.com/UkraineWithoutHype Music Hey Sokoli (Traditional)

15 Aug 20221h 3min

In a brief news update, Russia shifts away from the Sloviansk front to Avdiivka in Donbas, while building up its defenses against the awaited Ukrainian offensive in Kherson. Meanwhile, they continue their intense missile strike campaign, especially against Mykolaiv and are suspected of an unusual mass execution in a prison camp in Olenivka. Then, we speak with Sarah Ashton, an American journalist based out of Kharkiv. She tells us about the situation on the ground in the liberated front line towns in the north of the city that have to deal with the persistent threat of Russia returning. We also ask about what it is like as a trans woman coming to cover a war in a fairly conservative country. Sarah's Contacts and Projects Twitter: @SarahAshtonLV Substack: https://sarahashtoncirillo.substack.com/ Twitter Anthony: @Bartaway Romeo: @RomeoKokriatski Ukraine Without Hype: @HypeUkraine Patreon https://www.patreon.com/UkraineWithoutHype Music Hey Sokoli (Traditional)

2 Aug 202259min

Ukraine struck a deal to secure its grain exports, but Russian perfidy meant Moscow broke the agreement almost immediately. Following the end of the battle for Lysychansk, fighting on the front lines has slowed considerably, though that is very relative. Russia has not made any advances since then, and its artillery attacks are far less frequent. This is thanks in large part to the devastating effectiveness of the HIMARS system in destroying their logistics. This may be the key to a (hopefully) upcoming liberation of Kherson. But a slow down of violence on the front lines has also been an increase in missile attacks behind them. Vinnytsia is one of the homes of Ukraine Without Hype, so we give our personal reflection on the attacks that shook the city on July 14th. Twitter Anthony: @Bartaway Romeo: @RomeoKokriatski Ukraine Without Hype: @HypeUkraine Patreon https://www.patreon.com/UkraineWithoutHype Music Hey Sokoli (Traditional)

24 Jul 202248min

A rapid Russian advance finishes off the long battle for Luysychansk, allowing them to occupy the entirety of Luhansk Oblast. The Battle for Donbas shifts westward to the Seversk/Bakhmut line. Elsewhere, Ukrainian forces continue to make grinding progress around Kherson and Zaporizhia and force Russia to abandon Snake Island. Next, we discuss the protests in the Karakalpakstan region of Uzbekistan and the importance of watching Central Asia both in the broader regional and global contexts. Finally, we take a Patreon question on Turkey's attempt to stall out Swedish and Finnish NATO ascension, Ankara's geostrategic positioning, and how much Russia is capable of retaliating against the two (spoiler: very little). Twitter Anthony: @Bartaway Romeo: @RomeoKokriatski Ukraine Without Hype: @HypeUkraine Patreon https://www.patreon.com/UkraineWithoutHype Music Hey Sokoli (Traditional)

8 Jul 202252min

A rapid Russian offensive captures territory around Lysychansk, leading to the Ukrainian withdrawal from Severodonetsk, with a tough fight still to come. The Ukrainian parliament ratifies the Istanbul Convention, a landmark treaty against domestic and gendered violence. Ukraine is granted European Union candidate status, paving the way for future membership. It has been the dream of a generation of Ukrainians, but they have paid a heavy cost for it. The pro-Ukraine Bulgarian Prime Minister loses a vote of no confidence. Lithuania blocks off land transit of sanctioned goods to the Russian Baltic enclave of Kaliningrad. Twitter Anthony: @Bartaway Romeo: @RomeoKokriatski Ukraine Without Hype: @HypeUkraine Patreon https://www.patreon.com/UkraineWithoutHype Music Ode to Joy from Beethoven's 9th Symphony by Ludwig van Beethoven, Performed by Bayreuth Festival Orchestra (1951)

28 Jun 202259min

Severodonetsk becomes the centerpiece of the war, as fierce urban fighting claims hundreds of lives. Russian cruise missiles destroy a Kyiv civilian railcar repair plant in the first strike on the city in a month, increasing the difficulty of Ukraine's ability to export grain. Three foreign-born fighters are sentenced to death by the Russian puppet authorities in Donetsk. We go over who these men are and why calling them mercenaries is malicious propaganda. Twitter Anthony: @Bartaway Romeo: @VagrantJourno Ukraine Without Hype: @HypeUkraine Patreon https://www.patreon.com/UkraineWithoutHype Music Oh, the Red Viburnum in the Meadow (Traditional)

13 Jun 202256min

Brief news update: While Russia advances through the streets of Sieverodonetsk, Ukraine breaks through enemy lines in an offensive on the Kherson region. The US agrees to send Ukraine a new type of long-range rocket artillery after some very confusing negotiations. The branch of the Russian Orthodox Church in Ukraine breaks away from Moscow and its future is uncertain. (08:00) We have an interview with Christopher Atwood, a graduate student at the Harriman Institute at Columbia University in New York. He is a co-author of a report by the New Lines Institute and Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights which makes a legal case to classify Russia's atrocities against Ukrainians as a genocide. We give special attention to the role played by Russian media in spreading genocidal rhetoric. Report from New Lines Institute https://newlinesinstitute.org/an-independent-legal-analysis-of-the-russian-federations-breaches-of-the-genocide-convention-in-ukraine-and-the-duty-to-prevent/ Twitter Anthony: @Bartaway Romeo: @VagrantJourno Ukraine Without Hype: @HypeUkraine Christopher: @tca1_ Patreon https://www.patreon.com/UkraineWithoutHype Music Oh, the Red Viburnum in the Meadow (Traditional)

2 Jun 20221h 5min