I included a 10 days margin before the actual attack on the 24th of february, because by then apparently everyone important in the US security scene already knew the attack was underway -
Search results for
russia’s grievance narrative before:2022-02-14
search results for
russia’s grievance narrative after:2022-02-14
So, it turns out, that the results are STARKLY different.
Which is a good indicator, that Victoria Nuland probably meant the grievance narrative, that russia came up with - after the attack. Or the collective west, thats not so clear.
Someone ask a web based ngram dataset for web news.
Also, it turns out this article on February the 18h 2022 actually warned everyone in the collective West not to be duped by Putin’s Grievences against Nato:
Don’t be Duped by Putin’s Grievances against NATO
FSI StanfordFreeman Spogli Institute for International Studies
FSI Stanford
src: click
In there its already personalized, so “Putin’s grievances”
So, lets now head over to Linked in for the Authors current employer…
Yasmin Samrai - United States | Professional Profile
70+ Follower
Yasmin Samrai.Deployment: Strategist at Palantir Technologies. United States
src: click
Neat! Directly from a Desk editors job at the Standford Daily?
Someone check if thats the same person, I didnt. Age bracket fits.
Now, lets look at the actual argument in the article, right?!
The idea that the West is goading Russia into a war with Ukraine is not only popular in Russia, where 50% of the population believes the West is responsible for rising tensions, but also here in the United States. The New York Times ran a front-page story with the headline “Is Biden’s Strategy with Putin Working, or Goading Moscow to War?” Harvard professor Stephen Walt blamed the military buildup at the Ukrainian border on the “hubris, wishful thinking, and liberalism” of the U.S. and its European allies. Meanwhile, Republicans dropped their historic hard line on Russia and accused President Joe Biden of fomenting the crisis; Senator Josh Hawley even called for abandoning America’s longstanding commitment to Ukrainian membership in NATO. Taking the argument several steps further, Fox News host Tucker Carlson described the brewing conflict as a “manufactured crisis” devised by “restless, power-hungry neocons in Washington” and mused, “Why is it disloyal to side with Russia but loyal to side with Ukraine?”
It is deeply concerning that influential voices in the West are faulting the U.S. for the escalation of tensions in Ukraine. These commentators ignore Russia’s agency in fomenting the crisis and lend credence to Putin’s justification for war. Putin — it is worth remembering — annexed Crimea in 2014 and backed a violent rebellion in the Donbas region that has led to over 13,000 deaths. Putin (not Biden) has amassed over 100,000 troops on the Ukrainian border and drawn up elaborate plans to fabricate a Ukrainian attack on Russia. These are inconvenient truths for Kremlin leaders who prefer to perpetuate the myth of Russian innocence.
The grievance narrative is a trap and not to be used in the west, like western scholars regularly did before February the 18th 2022, because -
- It would lend credence to Putin’s justification for war
- it is worth remembering — [Russia] annexed Crimea in 2014 and backed a violent rebellion in the Donbas region that has led to over 13,000 deaths.
- Putin (not Biden) has amassed over 100,000 troops on the Ukrainian border and drawn up elaborate plans to fabricate a Ukrainian attack on Russia.
So naturally, western scholars should not use that argument anymore.
And those who did, subsequently lost their jobs as the most published authors on Project Syndicate.
Great.
So - this cant be used as an argument anymore, because it would help Putin, because the retaking of Crimea wasnt an act of grievance [WHAT?], and because it was Putin not Biden, who amassed 100.000 troops at the border - and drew up elaborated plans of the Ukraine having attacked Russia - which both arent directly related to russias grievance narrative against the collective west.
Any more obvious reasons we shouldnt use the narrative anymore? You know like western scholors did even a week before this article was published?
Sure:
The idea that the West is goading Russia into a war with Ukraine is not only popular in Russia, where 50% of the population believes the West is responsible for rising tensions, but also here in the United States.
Attention, this is also popular in Russia! Could be used as a war narrative, better call it fake from now on. (Feb 18, 2022)
And thanks for that Palantir job offer!
