OPERATION WAR

And then the war broke out. Or should we still say, began the special military operation. On February 24 2022, Russian troops invaded Ukraine. It was not allowed to call it ‘war’ or ‘invasion’, but it looked a hell of a lot like both.

Speech

Putin gave a speech (see also here and here), and probably believed in a quick victory. It turned into a disaster for everyone, and over two years later, the likelihood of terrible escalation seems more realistic than that of a quick end.

War

On Friday, March 22, 2024, through Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin also spoke of ‘war’. More on Russia Admits It’s ‘In State of War’ Two Years Into Ukraine Invasion (Newsweek) and The Kremlin says Russia is in a ‘state of war’ in Ukraine.

Poetin himself used the w-word too, and before Peskov did. See Putin declares ‘war’ – aloud – forsaking his special euphemistic operation (Washington Post, 22-12-2022) en In Russia, the talk is of ‘war’- even from Putin (Reuters, 08-06-2023).

This website

Even well before the Operation, Rusland1 (read: its creator) had come to a standstill. The last piece was posted in 2021. Now the project is being resumed. It was and is mostly about the Russian language, and that has not changed substantially. (Although, watch: How the War Has Changed the Russian Language, Easy Russian, 2023, 28 m.) 

Statement

The objectives once described (in the FAQ) do not change either. There is more rather than less reason to encourage learning and admiring the Russian language. For it is under pressure, with a declining number of students in many places. And whether Russia is a friend or an enemy, it never hurts to be able to talk.

Links

Many links have expired over the years, and no longer work. Channels have been discontinued, changed names or switched to Ukrainian.
Also, as was painfully noted, embedded videos have disappeared, ruining whole articles. Being worked on, but it is a lot of work. Punishment for previous diligence.
Checking all links is impossible. Notification of a dead link is appreciated.

In development

Starting soon, is the plan, new articles. In time, hopefully, a new form for the site. Possibly something in English as well.
Stay tuned. Мир миру.