22 January 2018. Lest We Forget… The Bravery of Leningrad in the Siege

V V Putin’s elder brother was one of the dead… the war still resonates in Russian hearts

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This vid has English subtitles

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Americans think that they defeated the fascists. That’s moonshine. The end of the beginning was in December 1941, when the counteroffensive opened outside Moscow… the beginning of the end was in January 1943, when Paulus surrendered at Stalingrad. Both of these events occurred before any American forces landed in Europe. That is, the Wehrmacht was on the run before the USA even landed troops in Europe! At best, the USA shortened the war in Europe… it didn’t play a major role in the defeat of the fascists… how could it when 85 percent of the fascist casualties were on the Russian front? The Germans were bled out by the time the Yanks came in. History is what it is…

BMD

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Lavrov Tells West to Respect Russia’s Red Lines in Foreign Policy

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On Sunday, Minister of Foreign Affairs S V Lavrov told Kommersant:

If we were to suppose that we can’t have any interests in the Euro-Atlantic region, then, yes, Russia’s border is a red line, but in fact, we have legitimate interests, there are Russians who found themselves outside Russia overnight when the former USSR collapsed. We have cultural, historical, close personal, and family ties with our neighbours. Russia has the right to protect the interests of its compatriots when they face persecution in other countries and when others violate their rights, as happened in the Ukraine. On could see the August 2008 developments when Georgia invaded South Ossetia and attacked Russian peacekeepers as such a red line. Russia has its interests and people should bear that in mind. Russia has red lines. I think serious politicians in Europe understand that they must respect these red lines as they used to respect them during the Cold War.

21 January 2018

TASS

http://tass.com/politics/986168

Last Respects to Late Russian and Soviet Composer V Ya Shainsky Today

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Here’s Krokodil Gena’s famous birthday song

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Here’s another of Shainsky’s sweet songs…

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Today, friends and relatives will pay last respects to the late Russian and Soviet composer V Ya Shainsky before his burial later today at Troyekurovskoye Cemetery in western Moscow. Widely known in the world of animation as the composer of the soundtrack for the famous Soviet cartoon series about Cheburashka and Krokodil Gena, Shainsky died at the age of 92 in San Diego CA USA on 25 December 2017. The Ministry of Culture quoted Deputy Minister A V Zhuravsky:

Due to the lengthy holidays, his relatives in the USA were unable to promptly obtain documents verifying his death. Moreover, relevant documents were also required to obtain permission for taking the body from the USA, and that required time.

Shainsky excelled in writing songs and music for children, marked by unpretentious but catchy tunes that very often enticed a child to sing along. He scored stunning success in composing songs for movies, and the multifilms about Cheburashka and Krokodil Gena, which now have versions in languages as different as Hebrew and Japanese, offer a shining example of it. Kid’s music wasn’t the only popular part of his output. Some of his songs for grownup audiences, like A Soldier’s Walking through the Town, surprisingly spilt over Russia’s borders. Shainsky lived in San Diego since 2007.

22 January 2018

TASS

http://tass.com/society/986182

22 January 2018. Grace Be Unto You, And Peace

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