Russia's War Against Ukraine
OP-ED
The Economist: Alternative reality
Russia's President Vladimir Putin (2nd L) meets with US Secretary of State John Kerry during their meeting at the Bocharov Ruchei residence in Sochi, May 12.
In the original instalment of the "hybrid war" that it launched against Ukraine last year, Russia's propaganda machine depicted its neighbour as a neo-Nazi state whose soldiers burnt villages and crucified children in the Russian-speaking east. But after the vast military parade Russia staged on May 9th, marking its victory over German (and by implication Ukrainian) fascism, a new story-line started to take shape. Ukraine is now portrayed as a failed state. It has defaulted on its debts and violated every international norm, and its Western sponsors are panicking.
