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Moscow, Russia Fyodor, a middle-aged Russian man, pulls out his phone from his pocket and scrolls through photos of himself and several others in camouflage fatigues.

They are holding up assault rifles and machineguns next to the white, blue and red of a Russian flag decorated with the emblem of their unit, a sword-and-shield with an Orthodox cross.

Our group was called the Russian Orthodox Army, even though Im an atheist and we had both Christians and Muslims, he told this reporter in a Moscow cafe, before swiping to the next photo.

This guy on the left, he was a local guy. He was a Muslim, and he was my friend. He died.

Fyodor, or Fedya for short, does not want to be known by his real name.

In 2014, after watching the Ukraine conflict from afar, he says he was wary of propaganda and decided to travel to the Donbas to see for himself. He ended up joining the Russia-backed separatist movement in eastern Ukraine, taking up arms with local rebels.

They were fighting a war with the central government in Kyiv, which they saw as having taken power in an ultranationalist coup during the Euromaidan revolution.

Once, eight of us were out on patrol through a field when we came under mortar fire, he recalled. I dont know how we survived. There was debris flying all around me, I hurt my shoulder, and I still had to carry another guy who injured his legs. Im not a believer at all but it was a real miracle all of us got out of there alive.

Fyodor saw how the war brought out the worst in people, and the grim realities of the rebels own brand of justice. He claims he once came across a 12-year-old girl who had been raped.

The man that did this, lets just say hes not around any more, he said ominously. I would have him brought to trial, personally, but I understand the people that put him up against the wall.

When he took the girl to hospital, he saw how locals in Donetsk perceived the conflict.

The staff took him aside and asked whether Russian President Vladimir Putin would wish them a Happy New Year in his annual, televised address to the nation.

Unlike Crimea, separatist Donetsk Peoples Republic (DPR) and Luhansk Peoples Republic (LPR) were never absorbed into the Russian Federation. Neither were they recognised by any member states of the United Nations, including Russia.

You can see that they really wanted to be part of Russia, but that never happened, even though most of them have Russian passports now, he said, referring to Russias policy that has seen many in the rebel-controlled areas handed citizenship in recent years.

I cant speak for all of them, of course, but if you tell someone from Donetsk they are Ukrainian, theyll take that as an insult. I kind of feel bad for them, like we let them down.

Fyodor believes there is a distinct possibility of the current standoff escalating, but says he would not return to the front.

Sooner or later, I think, this conflict will turn hot. The guys at the front lines are under strict orders not to shoot, but you understand it only takes one shot from the other side and some hot-headed lads will return fire.

If a war does break out, I hope at least we will get to Kharkov, he said, using the Russian name for Ukraines second-largest city.

To Ukrainians, the northeastern metropolis is Kharkiv, a former industrial centre in the Soviet era.

Ninety-nine of the population there supports us anyway, claimed Fyodor, who is happy to watch the tensions from afar these days, as he works in advertising.

I wouldnt go back to war now, even though some of the lads are talking about it and theyre trying to draw me back in. Id only return to deliver humanitarian supplies. My shoulder still hurts sometimes from that mortar blast.

Yuri Tikhonov is another veteran, originally from Pskov in western Russia.

Like Fyodor, he was in his 30s when he travelled to the Donbas in November 2014 after watching events unfold on news channels.

Having spent his compulsory military service doing tech support, his only experience with firearms had been, to that point, firing three shots out of a rifle. He was understandably anxious.

Id taken part in re-enactments, but its one thing running around with a sword and another charging the battle lines with an assault rifle, Tikhonov, now in Saint Petersburg and working in construction, told Al Jazeera by phone.

I didnt have any romantic notions of war: my parents were veterans and knew what it was really like. But I had my mind set and I knew if I didnt go, Id never respect myself.

Im ashamed I didnt head there sooner because the closer to the start of the conflict, the more important each step. Another 15-20 men could decide the outcome of one battle.

When he arrived, Tikhonov was sent near the town of Debaltseve, where he handled communications and radio intel.

He was grateful not to be assigned to any assault divisions since he is as large as an elephant and cannot shoot.

His duties included listening in to the Ukrainian army, which transmitted their artillery coordinates openly over the air.

We listened in to the chatter from the Ukrainian army, who at the time were very poor at hiding their signals. We knew exactly where they were firing. It was very satisfying hearing: Fire! No, stop, stop! They can hear us! Theyre driving away! he said.

Even though he was not on the front line, Tikhonov still had a couple of close calls.

Luckily, no one ever fired on me directly, but looking back, I can see how I was so young and nave and I wasnt really scared of anything, he said. I was installing an antenna on a roof when suddenly we came under mortar fire. I figured I didnt have time to run and take cover. So I just stood there and clung on I was more scared of dropping the antenna.

In January and February 2015, Tikhonov took part in the battle of Debaltseve.

Id go outside for a smoke while artillery rounds are whizzing over my head, like a passing train but much faster, while mortar rounds whistled as they flew past, he said.

But we managed to defend Debaltsevo until February, when we handed it over to the LPR.

After that, Tikhonov and his team did not take part in any more battles and by April, it was time to go home.

War is very interesting. If you have good people around you, its remarkable. Id go down to the cellar to eat dinner with the other volunteers, sat down and listened to their stories of how they ended up there, and youre proud to stand side-by-side with them, he said.

I was assigned to the communist volunteers detachment, and even though Im far from a communist, we were all united.

They love their people and are willing to sacrifice their lives for them, so matter what their politics are, youre always on the level with them.

However, he was ashamed of all the looting he saw, particularly from his own side.

The LPR practically robbed entire cities, he said. They told [people] they were about to come under fire so everyone hid in the basement, while their apartments were ransacked.

Yuri does not think there will be another war, since taking over territory not to mention ruling it is an expensive undertaking for which the Russian government does not have the capacity.

Sure, it would be nice if all the Russian-speaking peoples lived together as one, but the government doesnt need Ukraine as another part of Russia, he said.

Ive heard theyre being real careful now and not letting just any new volunteers to the front line. For these sort of escalations, you need completely controllable people that wont try to storm Mariupol by themselves, because if you hit them too hard and the Ukrainians retreat, then well have to capture more territory. No one wants this.

The Russian army simply doesnt have the resources for such an expansive operation, he added. We might reach Kharkov, and thats it.

Read the original post:
Ex-Russian separatists on whether another Ukraine war is possible - Al Jazeera English

Feb 15, 2022

Senior influencers nicknamed granfluencers continue to earn heaps of media coverage, possibly offering brands opportunities to reach older and younger social media users.

Among the star older influencers are the The Old Gays, four men from California in their sixties and seventies who use social media to give their perspectives on pop culture and growing up as gay men. The group, with 5.8 million followers on TikTok alone, have been featured on the Drew Barrymore Show and Today show.

A recent New York Times article highlighted three over-50 fashion influencers Grece Ghanem,Lyn SlaterandNina Garcia all with social media followings well past the half-million mark, all rejecting the cultures insistence that women become invisible 50 years before death.

Fifty-seven year old Lonni Pike, who goes by the name Gray Hair and Tattoos, has collected nearly one million TikTok followers and 103,000 Instagram followers with her body and age-positive messaging.

The New York Post last year noted that 92-year-old Helen Ruth Elam, who uses the social tagline Stealing Your Man Since 1928, earns as much as $9,815 per promo.

Its uncertain how many senior influencers are out there, but they may provide marketing conduits for reaching their digitally-savvy peers. Pew Research last year found the percentage of older adults aged 65 and older who used social media grew from three percent in 2005 to 45 percent in 2021.

With the majority of TikTok and Instagram users under 24 years old, the bigger opportunity may be reaching the Gen-Zers inspired by the authenticity, wisdom and can-do attitude of their elders.

Speaking to the Associated Press, AARP SVP Alison Bryant said many older creators offer a unique perspective for youth.

Theyre showing that anybody can do these things, that you dont have to be afraid of aging. The 20 and 30-somethings dont often think about that, Ms. Bryant said. The authenticity that were seeing in some of these older influencers is really refreshing. Thats part of the complexity of their narratives.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: Do elder social media influencers offer big opportunities for brands to reach older consumers? Do you see potential for them to reach younger audiences as well?

"The biggest takeaway here is the not so gentle reminder that on social media, particularly TikTok, brands should not aim to only target Gen Z."

Read the original:
Are granfluencers a thing? RetailWire - RetailWire

HELSINKI As the threat of a new Russian invasion of Ukraine grew, the European head of state with the longest and deepest experience dealing with Vladimir V. Putin fielded calls and doled out advice to President Emmanuel Macron of France and other world leaders desperate for insight into his difficult neighbor to the east.

What do you think about this about this, what about this, or this? Thats where I try to be helpful, said Sauli Niinisto, the president of Finland, as the harsh light gleaming off the snow and frozen bay poured into the presidential residence. They know that I know Putin, he added. And because it goes the other way around Putin sometimes says, Well, why dont you tell your Western friends that and that and that?

Mr. Niinisto, 73, said his role was not merely that of a Nordic runner, shuttling messages between East and West, but of borderland interpreter, explaining to both sides the thinking of the other. The departure from politics of Angela Merkel, who for years as Germanys chancellor led Europes negotiations with Mr. Putin, has made Mr. Niinistos role, while smaller, vital, especially as the drumbeat of war grows louder.

But Mr. Niinisto is not optimistic. Before and after his last long conversation with Mr. Putin last month, he said, he had noticed a change in the Russian. His state of mind, the deciding, decisiveness that is clearly different, Mr. Niinisto said. He believed Mr. Putin felt he had to seize on the momentum he has now.

He said it was hard to imagine that things would return to the way they had been before. The opposing sides disputed the Minsk agreement that the Russians insisted be honored. The remaining options boiled down to Russia pressuring Europe and extracting demands from the United States for the foreseeable future, or, he said, warfare.

Such plain speaking has made Mr. Niinisto, in the fifth year of his second six-year term, wildly popular in Finland. He is compared by some to Urho Kekkonen, who took power in 1956 and ruled Finland for 25 years, during the so-called Finlandization period of the Cold War.

We love him, said Juha Eriksson, as he sold Reindeer pelts, canned bear meat and smoked salmon sandwiches in a market next to ice shards in the bay. My generation had Kekkonen and he was the father of the country. And he is a little something like that. Its a pity that he must leave office soon.

Mr. Niinisto plays down his near 90 percent approval rating as consistent with his predecessors and dismisses the hyperbolic talk of his being some kind of Putin whisperer. Its an exaggeration that I somehow know more about Putin or his thinking, he said. He is clearly cautious about upsetting a relationship he has nurtured over a decade, including many meetings, countless phone calls and a game of ice hockey. Asked who was better, he responded diplomatically, Ive been playing all my life.

But he did point to some concrete benefits. After gaining support from Ms. Merkel, he said that he asked in 2020 if Mr. Putin would let Aleksei A. Navalny, the Russian opposition leader who accuses Russian operatives of poisoning him, to be flown to Germany for medical treatment. Mr. Navalnys office later thanked Mr. Niinisto.

He is a good person to call when you want to understand what is happening in the northeastern corner of Europe and especially if you want to understand the thinking of President Putin, said Alexander Stubb, a former prime minister and foreign minister, who has accompanied Mr. Niinisto in meetings with Mr. Putin. Hes a mastermind in power politics and in finding the right balance.

That Mr. Stubb was so effusive about the president itself said something about Mr. Niinistos overwhelming popularity, and political dominance, in Finland, as political tensions between the two are widely talked about here.

Mr. Niinisto derives his power from a critical national security meeting that he runs and from the Constitution, which states that foreign policy is led by the president of the republic in cooperation with the government.

Feb. 15, 2022, 5:59 p.m. ET

Its the president pause who is leading in cooperation, Mr. Niinisto explained, making it clear who came first.

Finnish officials say that Mr. Niinisto sheds his diplomatic modesty in private, and is known for his long political memory, cutting style and mission creep. I have been sometimes criticized for remembering too much my old history as minister of finance, he said with a smile.

Domestic policy is the territory of the prime minister, currently Sanna Marin, a 36-year-old former cashier and climate change campaigner who raised Mr. Niinistos ire in January, according to Finnish political observers, when she told Reuters that it was very unlikely that Finland would apply for NATO membership while she was in office.

I still say only that I see no major damages, he said, with visible restraint. Asked if her statement was constructive, he said I just repeat, no damages.

The NATO option mattered in Finland as a strategic tool to manage Mr. Putin. In a country with an abundance of sayings about the incorrigible nature of Russians (A Russian is a Russian even if you fry them in butter) Mr. Niinisto recalled one about Russian soldiers, saying, The Cossack takes everything, which is loose, which is not fixed.

The Kremlins position. President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, who has increasingly portrayed NATOs eastward expansion as an existential threat to his country, said that Moscows growing military presence on the Ukrainian border was a response to Ukraines deepening partnership with the alliance.

Despite recalling that Mr. Putin once said the friendly Finnish neighbor would become the enemy soldier if it joined NATO, Mr. Niinisto, who boasts about Finlands impressive artillery, frequently asserts Finlands right to become a member of the alliance. I have said it to Putin too, very clearly, he said.

Mr. Niinisto has also spoken directly to other leaders he suggested were threats to democracy. In a memorable joint news conference at the White House in 2019, he looked squarely at President Donald J. Trump and said, You have a great democracy. Keep it going on.

He doesnt respect institutions, Mr. Niinisto said of Mr. Trump in the interview, whether it was the European Union or NATO. And the Finn considered the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol building a worrying sign for American democracy.

But in dealing with Mr. Putin, Mr. Niinisto tried to give Mr. Trump some pointers before a summit in 2018 in Helsinki, actually behind that wall, he said pointing across the room. Before a solicitous public performance that was widely considered a disaster for Mr. Trump, Mr. Niinisto told Mr. Trump that Mr. Putin respects the one who is fighting back.

Mr. Niinisto has said he told Mr. Biden something similar ahead of Mr. Bidens call with Mr. Putin over Ukraine last month.

Besides the difficulty of dealing with Mr. Putin, Mr. Biden and Mr. Niinisto share another, and tragic, history. In 1995, Mr. Niinistos first wife died in a car accident, leaving him to raise his two young sons.

I know his history, Mr. Niinisto said quietly, adding that he might bring it up to the American president, who also lost his wife in a car crash as a young politician, someday maybe if I had the possibility of having a longer sit with him.

Mr. Niinisto also picked up the pieces. In 2009, then the speaker of Parliament, he married Jenni Haukio, then a 31-year-old director of communications for the National Coalition Party and now a poet. They have a 4-year-old son, and their dogs have become beloved national mascots.

Before the couple met, he was engaged to Tanja Karpela, a former Miss Finland who was a member of Parliament in an opposition party. They broke up in 2004, and Ms. Karpela now trains scent detection dogs that track Siberian flying squirrels.

The year of their breakup coincided with the devastating tsunami in Thailand, where he was vacationing with his sons and was nearly swept away. He survived by clinging high up on an electric pole for more than an hour. The traumatic event still seemed to shake the staid president, who lost a hundred countrymen that day. People who were sitting beside you at breakfast, he said.

That was a natural disaster. Now he hoped his relationship with Mr. Putin, and the small moves it might create, would help his partners avoid a man-made one in Ukraine.

Dangerous times, he said.

More:
Finland's President Knows Putin Well. And He Fears for Ukraine. - The New York Times

Adrianne brings 15 years of experience in leading multi-channel communications programs for well-known brands. Her career reflects diverse experience, from promoting MTV's Staying Alive Foundationthe world's largest HIV mass media awareness and prevention campaign aimed at young people, and serving as the first Communications Lead at Venmo, to driving community engagement around education reform in marginalized communities.

Most recently, Adrianne founded Rosie, a boutique storytelling agency that focuses on telling meaningful, hopeful, solutions-oriented stories of good. In this role, Adrianne built innovative marketing and communications programs and served as an advisor to senior leaders and board members across mission-driven Fortune 500 companies, startups and non-profit organizations, such as TIME'S UP, She Should Run and the Biden-Harris Campaign.

A passionate advocate for gender equality and closing the gender gap, Adrianne is also the co-founder of I Will Not Be Quiet, a nationwide community group that creates safe spaces for women to learn and unlearn so each can step into their full power and create true impact in the world. Adrianne serves on the board of Sad Girls Club, the largest female-led nonprofit organization that focuses on mental health for women of color and ignites conversations with Gen Z and Millennials.

"We are excited to have Adrianne join the team at this pivotal moment for DoSomething. She brings an impressive career at the intersection of advocacy and communications that will be an incredible asset to the next phase of our work," said DeNora Getachew, CEO, DoSomething. "Not only has she been a champion for causes that matter to young people like mental health and gender equity but through her work at Rosie, she gained a deep understanding of the cultural conversations in which our members are engaging. I am excited to welcome Adrianne to DoSomething."

In addition to overseeing all communications and marketing for DoSomething, Adrianne will help deepen the organization's engagement with its growing membership base of more than 5 million members around the world.

"I am honored to be joining DoSomething, during this unprecedented time in history. Young people are continuing to face deep challenges fromthe pandemic, and it's more important than ever to amplify their voices and help them be the change they want to see in the world," said Adrianne Wright. "As a grassroots organizer and storyteller, I am thrilled to be joining an organization that puts young people at the center, and I look forward to working together with their extraordinary team and contributors."

Adrianne joins the organization as it resets its priorities and recharges its efforts to effectively engage a generation of young people that has been irrevocably impacted by the pandemic. The last two years have amplified societal challenges related to climate change, mental health and racial justice, and young people are asking for more resources and support to tackle these issues. DoSomething's growing team will be focused on equipping young people with the opportunities, skills, tools, and community needed to effect change.

To learn more about DoSomething and explore career opportunities, visit dosomething.org/us/about/join-our-team

About DoSomething.orgDoSomething.org is the largest organization exclusively for young people and social change. We're activating 5 million young people (and counting!) to make positive change, online and off, in every US area code and in over 131 countries. When you join DoSomething.org, you join something bigger than yourself.

SOURCE DoSomething.org

More here:
DoSomething.org Appoints New Vice President of Communications and Marketing to Center and Amplify the Voice of Young People - PRNewswire

Some diplomats and experts speculated that the White House had little appetite for a Senate confirmation hearing that could devolve into a debate about Nord Stream 2, a natural gas pipeline between Russia and Germany that members of both parties have criticized Mr. Biden for not opposing more vigorously. Republicans might also use a confirmation hearing to dredge up the past business activities in Ukraine of Mr. Bidens son, Hunter, although one Senate Republican official said he was aware of no plans to do so.

Also unclear is why Ukraine might not have immediately signed off on Ms. Brink, a Foreign Service officer for more than two decades who has been posted in two other former Soviet republics, Uzbekistan and Georgia.

The Kremlins position. President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, who has increasingly portrayed NATOs eastward expansion as an existential threat to his country, said that Moscows growing military presence on the Ukrainian border was a response to Ukraines deepening partnership with the alliance.

Mr. Zelenskys office has consolidated much of its foreign policy activity with his chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, who speaks regularly to Mr. Bidens national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, in what has become the center of gravity of the U.S.-Ukrainian relationship. It is possible the Ukrainians prefer to keep it that way.

Ukrainian officials in recent years have also seen American ambassadors as patronizing scolds who continually issue statements and call meetings to reprimand Ukrainian elites over insider dealing and good governance failures.

And then there is the memory of the Trump years, and the dismissal of Ms. Yovanovitch. In the events leading to his impeachment, Mr. Trump, hoping to damage Mr. Biden before the 2020 election, leveraged U.S. military aid to pressure Mr. Zelensky to investigate Hunter Bidens work for a Ukrainian energy company, according to testimony during the impeachment hearings.

In April 2019, Mr. Trumps personal lawyer Rudolph W. Giuliani persuaded the president to remove Ms. Yovanovitch from the position after she opposed Mr. Giulianis efforts there to dig up dirt on Hunter Biden. (No evidence of wrongdoing was found on the part of Hunter Biden or his father. Mr. Trump denied doing anything improper and was acquitted in his Senate trial.)

In a reminder that the position can get tangled in Ukraines contentious domestic politics, some Ukrainian officials encouraged Mr. Giulianis opposition to Ms. Yovanovitch because her focus on anti-corruption initiatives threatened their interests. The countrys top prosecutor at the time, Yuriy Lutsenko, referred to Ms. Yovanovitch in a text message to an associate as an idiot, according to evidence released during the impeachment proceedings.

See the rest here:
Puzzle in Ukraine Crisis: Wheres the U.S. Ambassador? - The New York Times