Ukraine Without Hype

Latest Episodes:

Episode 26: Ukraine Destroys Military Logistics, Russia Destroys Civilian Lives Jul 24, 2022

Show notes

Ukraine struck a deal to secure its grain exports, but Russian perfidy meant Moscow broke the agreement almost immediately.
Following the end of the battle for Lysychansk, fighting on the front lines has slowed considerably, though that is very relative. Russia has not made any advances since then, and its artillery attacks are far less frequent. This is thanks in large part to the devastating effectiveness of the HIMARS system in destroying their logistics. This may be the key to a (hopefully) upcoming liberation of Kherson.
But a slow down of violence on the front lines has also been an increase in missile attacks behind them. Vinnytsia is one of the homes of Ukraine Without Hype, so we give our personal reflection on the attacks that shook the city on July 14th.

Twitter
Anthony: @Bartaway
Romeo: @RomeoKokriatski
Ukraine Without Hype: @HypeUkraine

Patreon
https://www.patreon.com/UkraineWithoutHype

Music
Hey Sokoli (Traditional)

Episode 25: The International News Interlude - Uzbekistan, Turkey, Finland, Sweden Jul 08, 2022

Show notes

A rapid Russian advance finishes off the long battle for Luysychansk, allowing them to occupy the entirety of Luhansk Oblast. The Battle for Donbas shifts westward to the Seversk/Bakhmut line. Elsewhere, Ukrainian forces continue to make grinding progress around Kherson and Zaporizhia and force Russia to abandon Snake Island.
Next, we discuss the protests in the Karakalpakstan region of Uzbekistan and the importance of watching Central Asia both in the broader regional and global contexts.

Finally, we take a Patreon question on Turkey's attempt to stall out Swedish and Finnish NATO ascension, Ankara's geostrategic positioning, and how much Russia is capable of retaliating against the two (spoiler: very little).

Twitter
Anthony: @Bartaway
Romeo: @RomeoKokriatski
Ukraine Without Hype: @HypeUkraine

Patreon
https://www.patreon.com/UkraineWithoutHype

Music
Hey Sokoli (Traditional)

Episode 24: Ode to Joy - Ukraine Gains EU Candidacy Jun 28, 2022

Show notes

A rapid Russian offensive captures territory around Lysychansk, leading to the Ukrainian withdrawal from Severodonetsk, with a tough fight still to come.
The Ukrainian parliament ratifies the Istanbul Convention, a landmark treaty against domestic and gendered violence.
Ukraine is granted European Union candidate status, paving the way for future membership. It has been the dream of a generation of Ukrainians, but they have paid a heavy cost for it.
The pro-Ukraine Bulgarian Prime Minister loses a vote of no confidence.
Lithuania blocks off land transit of sanctioned goods to the Russian Baltic enclave of Kaliningrad.

Twitter
Anthony: @Bartaway
Romeo: @RomeoKokriatski
Ukraine Without Hype: @HypeUkraine

Patreon
https://www.patreon.com/UkraineWithoutHype

Music
Ode to Joy from Beethoven's 9th Symphony by Ludwig van Beethoven, Performed by Bayreuth Festival Orchestra (1951)

Episode 23: Ukrainian Foreign-born Fighters Held Hostage and Threatened with Execution Jun 13, 2022

Show notes

Severodonetsk becomes the centerpiece of the war, as fierce urban fighting claims hundreds of lives.

Russian cruise missiles destroy a Kyiv civilian railcar repair plant in the first strike on the city in a month, increasing the difficulty of Ukraine's ability to export grain.

Three foreign-born fighters are sentenced to death by the Russian puppet authorities in Donetsk. We go over who these men are and why calling them mercenaries is malicious propaganda.

Twitter
Anthony: @Bartaway
Romeo: @VagrantJourno
Ukraine Without Hype: @HypeUkraine

Patreon
https://www.patreon.com/UkraineWithoutHype

Music
Oh, the Red Viburnum in the Meadow (Traditional)

Episode 22: Making the Case that Russia is Committing Genocide in Ukraine Jun 02, 2022

Show notes

Brief news update: While Russia advances through the streets of Sieverodonetsk, Ukraine breaks through enemy lines in an offensive on the Kherson region. The US agrees to send Ukraine a new type of long-range rocket artillery after some very confusing negotiations. The branch of the Russian Orthodox Church in Ukraine breaks away from Moscow and its future is uncertain.

(08:00) We have an interview with Christopher Atwood, a graduate student at the Harriman Institute at Columbia University in New York. He is a co-author of a report by the New Lines Institute and Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights which makes a legal case to classify Russia's atrocities against Ukrainians as a genocide. We give special attention to the role played by Russian media in spreading genocidal rhetoric.

Report from New Lines Institute
https://newlinesinstitute.org/an-independent-legal-analysis-of-the-russian-federations-breaches-of-the-genocide-convention-in-ukraine-and-the-duty-to-prevent/

Twitter
Anthony: @Bartaway
Romeo: @VagrantJourno
Ukraine Without Hype: @HypeUkraine

Christopher: @tca1_

Patreon
https://www.patreon.com/UkraineWithoutHype

Music
Oh, the Red Viburnum in the Meadow (Traditional)

Episode 21: Victory at Kharkiv and Eurovision, but Grim Fighting over the Donets River May 25, 2022

Show notes

Anthony Bartaway goes over the latest updates from the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

(1:00) The fears of Russian general mobilization on Victory Day proved to be false.

(1:40) The defenders of Mariupol finally surrender, and their future is uncertain.

(4:30) The Ukrainian counter-offensive in Kharkiv successfully drives Russian forces away from the city, in some places straight to the border.

(7:50) A deep dive into the role played by the Siverskyi Donets River in the Battle for Donbas, and the advantages and difficulties that it gives either side.

(20:20) What Happens Next?

(26:45) Complete Change of Tone: Ukraine Wins Eurovision

(32:00) Patreon Question: What is the situation in Poland with refugees who have been raped by Russian soldiers and need abortion services?

Eurovision Winning Song "Stephania" by Kalush Orchestra
https://youtu.be/UiEGVYOruLk
https://youtu.be/Z8Z51no1TD0

Twitter
Anthony: @Bartaway
Romeo: @VagrantJourno
Ukraine Without Hype: @HypeUkraine

Patreon
https://www.patreon.com/UkraineWithoutHype

Music
Oh, the Red Viburnum in the Meadow (Traditional)

Episode 20: Russian Imperial Antisemitism May 09, 2022

Show notes

The Russian offensive in Donbas becomes bogged down outside of Izyum and Sievierodonetsk, with only minor forward progress since our last update. Meanwhile, Ukrainian forces take the initiative around Kharkiv and score more hits against the Russian Navy and its positions on occupied Snake Island in the Black Sea. Russia's effort to rope Transnistria into a suicidal war is subsiding, but still something to watch. The US lend-lease bill begins to show results in getting much-needed equipment to Ukrainian defenders.

(32:20) For our main segment, we focus on the incredibly antisemitic remarks made by Russian FM Sergei Lavrov and the Russian media who picked up on them. We do a bit of a deeper dive into the history and nature of Russian antisemitism, and how it is an integral part of the Russian imperial project.

Twitter
Anthony: @Bartaway
Romeo: @VagrantJourno
Ukraine Without Hype: @HypeUkraine

Patreon
https://www.patreon.com/UkraineWithoutHype

Music
זאָג ניט קיין מאָל (Never Say) by Hirsch Glick, Performed by Leon Lishner and Friends

Episode 19: The Aftermath of Occupation Apr 25, 2022

Show notes

The Battle for Donbas rages on as the Russian army tries desperately to encircle Ukrainian forces in the east, while the defenders of Mariupol make their last stand in the ruins of the sprawling Azovstal metallurgical plant. Meanwhile, the Ukrainian army presses in on Russian-occupied territory in the East from Kharkiv and the West toward Kherson. Ukraine has begun receiving shipments of heavy weapons in order to take the fight to the enemy.
At the 37-minute mark, Anthony recounts a reporting trip into the Brovary region, where Russian soldiers sacked the villages of the eastern Kyiv countryside.

Article Referenced
https://english.nv.ua/nation/terror-and-looting-in-the-farming-villages-that-bore-the-brunt-of-russia-s-eastern-push-towards-kyiv-50236045.html

Twitter
Anthony: @Bartaway
Romeo: @VagrantJourno
Ukraine Without Hype: @HypeUkraine

Patreon
https://www.patreon.com/UkraineWithoutHype

Music
Oh, the Red Viburnum in the Meadow (Traditional)

Episode 18: How many acts of Genocide does it take to make Genocide? Apr 06, 2022

Show notes

Russian soldiers have retreated from northern Ukraine and will try to re-focus on Donbas, but what they left behind is a path of destruction that must be called a genocide. There have been multiple statements from the Russian government showing genocidal intent, and that intent was followed with action. Evidence of mass murder and other crimes is found in nearly every location that Russia occupied.
To sort through some of the issues regarding genocide and denial, we speak with scholar Joey Ayoub of the Fire These Times podcast. Ukraine Without Hype is also partnering with Fire These Times to produce a Ukraine series on their channel.

Twitter
Anthony: @Bartaway
Romeo: @VagrantJourno
Joey Ayoub: @joeyayoub
Fire These Times: @FireTheseTimes
Patreon
https://www.patreon.com/UkraineWithoutHype

Music

Plyve Kacha Po Tysyni, Traditional performed by Unattributed CC BY

Episode 17: One Month Of War, Eight Years in the Making Mar 23, 2022

Show notes

Anthony Bartaway and Romeo Kokriatski talk about the current situation in the Russo-Ukraine War. Russian advances around Kyiv, Chernihiv, Sumy, and Kharkiv have been stopped by Ukrainian defenders, but have been replaced with artillery fire and rocket strikes. Along the Black Sea coast, the Russian army has been turned away from Mykolaiv, but is committing horrible war crimes to try and break Mariupol.
In the second segment, they sit down with Kiril, an open-source intelligence analyst with the Conflict Intelligence Team. We ask him about the state of the Russian army and why it seems to be underperforming so severely compared to their strength on paper.
Twitter Accounts:
Anthony: @bartaway
Romeo: @vagrantjourno
Kiril: @Mortis_banned
Conflict Intelligence Team: @CITeam_en

Support us at Patreon.com/UkraineWithoutHype
Closing song: Bella Ciao, Ukrainian translation by Alex Tkachuk, performed by Vitalii Vointenko, Creative Commons

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