Russian TV Analyst Calls Out Hypocrisy of Supporting Putin's War in Ukraine

Michael Bohm, an American-born journalist who lives in Russia, called out the hypocrisy of supporting Russian President Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine, despite the amount of destruction caused by the invasion compared to other military actions in the past.

Bohm compared the Russian war in Ukraine to NATO's bombing in Kosovo, Serbia, or former Yugoslavia, in 1999. His remarks came as part of a TV segment, which included English subtitles and was posted to Twitter on Saturday by Julia Davis, a columnist at The Daily Beast and creator of the Russian Media Monitor.

"How many times have we heard from you and others that NATO's military campaign in Kosovo, in Serbia are absolutely illegitimate at their core, because there was no UN mandate. It was described as American lawlessness, a blatant disregard of international law," Bohm said.

"Now tell me, does Russia have a UN mandate for its military actions in Ukraine?" Bohm asked TV host Roman Babyan, who replied "no."

"Oh, but it's different, right?" Bohm then asked.

Bohm also asked Babyan whether both wars are different, to which the host responded: "We are conducting a special military operation and NATO was conducting its special military operation as far as the magnitude that you mentioned."

During their heated exchange, Babyan added: "It's funny for me to hear you pontificate about the magnitude, since you were not there, you didn't see anything and you don't know anything and you're trying to tell ME about it! It's very funny Michael."

Bohm then argued that both situations don't compare in terms of the "magnitude of destruction" with the NATO bombing lasting until June 10 after the first strikes were launched on March 24, while the war in Ukraine has reached its nine-month mark.

Russian TV Analyst Calls Out Hypocrisy of-supporting-Putin's-war
Above, Russian President Vladimir Putin gestures during the AIJ 2022 Conference on November 24 in Moscow. Michael Bohm, an American-born journalist who lives in Russia, called out TV host Roman Babyan for his hypocrisy of... Photo by Contributor/Getty Images

"How many times have I heard, 'Americans are villains, look at the way they wage wars' but it turns out, you're doing the same. I am confused about your condemnation," Bohm said, adding that both military actions are equally "bad."

"It is also bad when you first condemn it and then emulate the same thing," he added.

Meanwhile, Ukraine has recently experienced a series of heavy Russian missile strikes that hit energy facilities across the country, sending millions into darkness and causing blackouts ahead of the harsh winter months.

Russia attacked the Eastern European country's power grid again last week, killing three people in a strike that hit a building in Kyiv, according to authorities. Power outages were reported in multiple cities including the capital and neighboring country, Moldova.

As of Friday night, 600,000 people were disconnected from the grid in Kyiv, with many residents experiencing blackouts for over 20 hours, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Linda Thomas-Greenfield, U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, accused Russia of trying to pressure Ukraine "into submission" by targeting energy facilities.

"[Russian President Vladimir] Putin's motive could not be more clear and more cold-blooded. He is clearly—clearly—weaponizing winter to inflict immense suffering on the Ukrainian people. He has decided that if he can't seize Ukraine by force, he will try to freeze the country into submission," she said during a U.N. Security Council meeting last week.

Newsweek reached out to the Russian foreign affairs ministry for comment.

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Fatma Khaled is a Newsweek weekend reporter based in New York City. Her focus is reporting on U.S. politics, world ... Read more

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