“We can't determine our own politics - if we had a real federation, the head of our republic could say no, Buryats won't fight in this criminal war. But he keeps providing cannon fodder for Putin. Buryatia, like the other ethnic republics, is governed by the colonial policies of Moscow. Our languages and history are disappearing off the face of the Earth, while Moscow sucks all the money and resources out of the provinces. Moscow is a beautiful city but it's such a facade of all of Russia, because if you go just a little further, the houses are falling apart, there are no roads, there's no work. Contractors [soldiers] and their families are always writing to us, saying that they don't want to fight, but there are many obstacles along the way. Some of them are being held back on occupied territories [of Ukraine], and they're pressured, threatened, afraid they'll be sent to the front line to be killed. When they submit their refusal, they're asked 'Who will defend the motherland?' They reply if someone attacks their motherland they'll defend it, but they see no motherland in Ukraine. We know we can't influence Vladimir Putin directly, but the less cannon fodder he has at his disposal, the sooner this war will end.”
02 Aug 2022
4
2
Read More
