Re: tl;dr - the "NATO-Ukraine war on Russia"
While this might come across as a distraction, given my scepticism regarding your neutrality and the fact I've no idea who these people are, you'll forgive me if I want to check out this self-proclaimed "World Socialist Web Site" before I waste any more time taking what they say at face value.
That's fine, and it's always good to check the sources. But I have no idea who those people are either. I was simply using it because it shows the photo of Zaluzhnyi with the portraits & busts of Banderas and other OUN war criminals. Because the subject of neo-nazism and the resurgence of OUN ultranationalism can be a bit.. touchy, it's sometimes difficult to find images demonstrating this because they have a tendendcy of being memory holed. Or airbrushed. So this image-
https://mronline.org/2022/09/20/zelensky-quietly-deletes-photo-of-his-bodyguards-pro-hitler-patch/
A closer look at the R3ICH’s “Operator Skull” patch reveals an even more disturbing detail: a skeleton key displayed on the top right of the helmet is a clear reference to SS Division Leibstandarte, or Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler–Hitler’s personal bodyguard unit.
Sporting that kind of insignia might get you arrested in most of the civilised world, but in Ukraine, it's fine. And this-
However, this reporter was able to find three online vendors based in Ukraine that sell the patch, which is branded the “Operator Skull” and manufactured by a company called R3ICH, an explicit reference to Nazi Germany.
would probably also get those vendors shut down. But not in Ukraine. And even Snopes weighs in-
https://www.snopes.com/news/2023/06/28/ukrainian-military-nazi-cross/
And attempts to justify why Ukrainians are painting a WW2-era German Balkenkreuz on their vehicles. After WW2, Germany dropped that and use a different cross on their vehicles because of the negative historical assosciations. But not in Ukraine. Snopes also points to another bit of interesting history-
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukrainian_People%27s_Army
Where Ukrainian nationalists declared an independent Ukrainian state, declared war on the Soviets, murdered Poles and that didn't end well. Then as the OUN, sided with the Nazis and tried much the same thing, assuming Germany would allow an independent Ukraine. But neither Germany nor the Soviets agreed with that cunning plan either. But this is why there's a lot of bad blood and history in that particular region. Much of it inspired by this chap-
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taras_Shevchenko#
Who dreamed of a 'Ukrainian identity' that never really existed, in much the same way the Nazis created their aryan and teutonic mythology.. But then Hitler and his goon squad were inspired by much the same school of thought as Shecvhenko and others that emerged at the time. Or it's just normal for revolutionaries, rise up, attack your opressors, seize power (and wealth) and then oppress anyone who doesn't agree. UPA did that, OUN did that, it's successors are doing it again today under the same banner as the OUN. But then parts of Ukraine rejected the OUN 'dream', and the civil war began in 2014.
Anyway, someway down the front page, they have a banner linking to an article on a related site (also owned by them) which calls for the freeing of Bogdan Syrotiuk, a "socialist political prisoner in Ukraine" who has apparently been "seized from his home by Ukrainian police in April 2024 [and] charged with “high treason” for writing articles opposing the US-led war against Russia on the World Socialist Web Site".
Yep. Haven't read that bit, but sounds normal for the Ukrainian regime. Criticise it, get thrown in jail. Happened to a US journalist, Gonzalo Lira, except he died in a Ukrainian prison after alleging that he was tortured. US State Department did nothing to secure his release, despite being a US citizen. He should have played basketball, then maybe the US would have helped him.