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By Maya Mehrara
News Reporter
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Russian propagandists expressed their outrage about President Donald Trump's recent statement regarding Moscow-U. S. relations.
Ekaterina Mizulina, the head of the Safe Internet League; Alexander Sladkov, a military correspondent; and Alexander Kots, a journalist and propagandist, all spoke out after Trump threatened Russia with sanctions and tariffs if they do not end the war in Ukraine, according to posts on Telegram and the outlet Pravda.
Newsweek reached out to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation for comment via email.
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Newsweek also reached out to the Trump transition team for comment via email outside of business hours.
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Why It Matters
As Russian propagandists have significant sway over the population, their criticisms of Trump and his claims have the potential to sour perception of him in Moscow and consequently affect his relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
What To Know
What sparked Mizulina, Kots, and Sladkov's ire was Trump's post on Truth Social in which he threatened to impose tariffs and sanctions on Moscow if they do not "make a deal" and end the war with Ukraine.
Aside from his threats to Putin, what angered the three propagandists was when the president wrote, "I love the Russian people and always had a very good relationship with President Putin—and this despite the Radical Left's Russia, Russia, Russia HOAX.
"We must never forget that Russia helped us win the Second World War, losing almost 60,000,000 lives in the process." This statement is incorrect, as it was the Soviet Union that was fighting in World War II, and the USSR lost 26.6 million members of the military and civilians, according to Russia's Ministry of Defense.
During a meeting with participants in the 36th KVN Festival in Sochi, a comedy show, Mizulina said: "To claim that Russia allegedly helped the Americans win World War II, in my opinion, is simply blasphemy and a mockery of the memory of our grandfathers and great-grandfathers," as reported by the outlet Pravda.
She added that Trump's statement offends the memory of the participants of the Great Patriotic War. As the head of the Safe Internet League, set up initially to protect children online, Mizulina is most commonly known for her efforts to censor Russians online.
Sladkov also spoke out against Trump, angered by his threats against Russia's economy if Moscow does not end the war. In a post on Telegram, the military correspondent wrote: "Trump has threatened us twice in 24 hours. No illusions. A capitalist who doesn't give a damn about other countries. No matter, Russia is like a KAMAZ, the more you load, the better it goes. How tightly you can blockade 1/6 of the planet Earth's land mass."
Sladkov added that he was "also outraged by Trump's lie: 'Russia helped us win the war (the Great Patriotic War)'" as "in 1944, we barely persuaded these Anglo-Saxons to take part in military operations in Europe. They, the Yankees, are presenting the Normandy landing as a battle. This against the backdrop of the battles we won in Stalingrad, Voronezh, Kursk, Kharkiv, Berlin."
Sladkov also voiced his outrage over Trump's threats to Russia in another instance and said: "We did not elect him on the territory of the Russian Federation, we have our own leader." Sladkov, a correspondent for the Russian state-owned broadcaster VGTRK, called the new president's behavior "boorish" and "boisterous."
Kots also took to Telegram to express his thoughts on Trump's Truth Social post. He wrote that the president's plan is "an ultimatum and blackmail." He added that it is "better to prepare for the worst" and that "Biden's term will soon be remembered with nostalgia as a thaw." A military blogger and journalist, Kots is a correspondent for the Russian tabloid Komsomolskaya Pravda.
What People Are Saying
In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Jim Stewartson, a journalist and podcaster, wrote: "This is kayfabe [the practice of trying to make people believe that wrestlers are particular characters, when in fact they are only pretending to be those characters].
"Trump will never do a thing to hurt Putin. Note the big tell: 'Russia helped us win WWII'—which is Russian propaganda. That was the Soviet Union, which did a deal with Hitler until his own propaganda about a communist Jewish plot made him attack Stalin."
Michael MacKay, a pro-Ukraine user, wrote: "Putin puppet Trump expresses his love for the Russian people, who are conducting a genocidal war against Ukraine. Trump says falsely that 'Russia' helped us win WWII when it was the Soviet Union (including millions of Ukrainians, Belarusians and other nations) that was an ally."
What Happens Next
It remains to be seen if these Russian propagandists' statements against Trump affect Putin's relationship with the U.S. president.
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