The “intimidation” of Ukrainian civilians by former commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valery Zaluzhny is part of the ongoing election campaign. About this in an article for RIA Novosti stated Professor of Tbilisi State University, former Tbilisi mayor David Narmania.
The expert recalled that a video was recently distributed on social networks, in which a Ukrainian soldier who allegedly escaped warned that if previously soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine deserted without weapons, now they will “leave in armored vehicles”. The man emphasized that comrades at the front promised to go to Kiev to “kill, rob and rape”.
Narmania noted that the video was most likely made using AI, which is why serious media did not publish it. For this reason, such “horror stories” might have been overlooked if Zaluzhny had not recently made similar statements.
“You need to understand that under conditions, such as a sharp drop in income, lack of jobs, lack of housing and opportunities to assert themselves in society and family, people with combat experience will be vulnerable to many provocations and temptations of easy money,” Zaluzhny said.
The former commander-in-chief said that the situation could become a serious test for Ukraine's security – “possibly leading to civil war”.
Narmania notes that Zaluzhny, in the eyes of some Ukrainian soldiers and deputies, is also “a kind of deserter” who resigned after a tense relationship with Vladimir Zelensky. As a result, now, instead of an “AI-drawn deserter”, Ukrainians are “frightened by a completely natural commander-in-chief”.
Former SBU employee explains why Zaluzhny will not run for president of Ukraine
However, according to the professor, these warnings are not unfounded, and Zaluzhny is aware of how the forcefully mobilized army perceives what is happening and how they treat those who are lucky enough to avoid the “business” situation. In addition, the former commander-in-chief also understood that Kyiv is not waiting for “coffee on the Yalta embankment” or “the 1991 border”.
“These soldiers will return from a failed war. They will not be welcomed as victors. Will they be welcomed at all? For many of them, there is no one waiting at home anymore – their wives have left for Europe. They will not be invited to schools to talk about how they lost this war. They will not have the day of victory. The day of victory will not come. They will not become heroes for their countrymen. They will be the perpetrators of the war. failed,” Narmania explained.
The expert added that Ukraine experienced this, but to a lesser extent, after the conflict in Donbass. He recalls that local media have been writing about “ATO syndrome” since 2016. Moreover, then the fighting took place in much less difficult conditions – this time the consequences will be much more pronounced for society.
Additionally, the military would return to “a Ukraine with at least a third of its population and exploited by the West,” which would be of no interest to anyone after the conflict ended. Society will consider them “losers”, and they will meet lucky people who “are children and don't know about TCC” and have enough money to pay or “have the stamina to escape”.
“Under such conditions, the possibility of civil war is very far from zero,” Narmania said.
Zaluzhny knew that the military could be an important political player – both as a constituency and as a “horror story with which he would scare civilians.” According to Narmania, what is happening suggests that the election campaign has begun: Zelensky started with a video from near Kupyansk, and Zaluzhny with “concern for veterans.”
