Susanne von Dewitz

More Europe less war. “The only story we all can fit into is a true one.” Victoria Amelina

[Gianl1974 @Gianl1974]

"Putin will wage war. I don’t know when, but he will. And you, Europeans, will be surprised to discover that this war is aimed at you, too... You think that what is happening in Moscow has nothing to do with you—that it’s our problem.
Putin hates people like me, certainly. But through us—in Russia, or through the revolutionaries in Ukraine or Georgia—it is you he hates: your democracy, your society, your freedoms.
Do you think his regime is merely a threat to us? Your awakening will be brutal."

Anna Politkovskaya, in Paris, 2005.
She was assassinated in the lobby of her apartment building on October 7, 2006—Putin’s birthday.

[Susanne von Dewitz @SusanneDewitz]

@McFaul She is looking for freedom in Russia, that chooses aggression over peace? Either she has a strange vision of freedom or is completely misled. Russia uses economic ties as leverage.

[Michael McFaul @McFaul]

The root cause of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine is Putin.

Putin launched his full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 without being provoked and without any threat to Russia from Ukraine or NATO.

[Petr Pavel @prezidentpavel]

Ruský útok na civilisty na vlakovém nádraží v Dnipru je neomluvitelný. Myslím na rodiny, které se už svých blízkých nedočkají, i na zraněné a všechny Ukrajince, kteří takovému teroru čelí roky.

Ukrajina letos opakovaně veřejně potvrdila, že je připravena jednat o míru. Je na Rusku, aby stejnou ochotu konečně prokázalo také svými činy.

Základem mírových jednání musí být ochrana civilistů a návrat unesených ukrajinských dětí k jejich rodinám. Ukrajinci v tom mají naši podporu, protože si stejně jako my zaslouží žít v bezpečí ve vlastní zemi.

[Olena Zelenska / Олена Зеленська @ZelenskaUA]

Russia struck a platform and a regular passenger train in Dnipro. At least 14 people were killed. My condolences to their families. These are devastating losses. My condolences and wishes for a speedy recovery to all who were injured. Thank you to everyone working to rescue people on this very difficult day. You are preserving what is most precious to us: human life.

[Michael McFaul @McFaul]

https://t.co/8k8wWR18At

[Baltic Takes @Baltic_Takes]

“Dear Italian students, who today take to the streets carrying flags with the hammer and sickle and wearing T-shirts emblazoned with ‘CCCP’,” began an open letter in Italian by Lithuanian expat Neringa Budryt.

“I would like to ask you a question: do you truly know what the symbols you carry represent? And do you know what would have happened to many of you had you openly demonstrated in countries living under the oppression of communist regimes?

Let me tell you something. It is easy to display a red flag when, for you, communism is merely an abstract idea of equality, social justice, and rebellion against the system. It is easy to wear a T-shirt with "CCCP" on it when you have never experienced the reality of a communist regime.

We come from that part of Europe where communism was not a T-shirt, a symbol of rebellion, or a romanticized notion of equality. It was the system in which we lived—a system we never chose.

We know the history of Soviet repression, Stalinist purges, the Gulags, and mass deportations. Above all, we know the word "Siberia"—a place to which thousands of innocent people were forcibly deported, simply for thinking differently.

In Siberia—amidst freezing cold, starvation, and forced labor—many lost their lives; those who survived carried the scars of that experience forever. Entire families were torn apart, and generations were denied the chance to live freely in their own homeland.

In the countries of the Soviet bloc, censorship, political police, surveillance, and the suppression of dissent drastically curtailed individual freedoms.

We grew up in a system where state control permeated even our daily lives. At school, we were required to wear the red necktie of the "Pioneers." We were monitored; they tracked where we went and even whether we attended church. Even faith—a choice that should belong to an individual’s own conscience—could become a cause for suspicion.

We used to celebrate Christmas with our windows blacked out, to ensure no one would see us and report us. Because it was forbidden—just like so many other things: jeans, rock music, and all the symbols of a Western lifestyle. My mother returned from a Soviet labor camp. And do you know what happened to her? She was barred from continuing her education because she had been labeled an enemy of communism.

Under a communist regime, you could not protest. You risked arrest, imprisonment, interrogation, persecution—and, in certain historical contexts, even death. In the Soviet Union and other communist regimes, political dissent could cost you your freedom and your life.

Demonstrations independent of the authorities were not a guaranteed right; they were often suppressed by force.
That is why it strikes me to see young Italians proudly displaying the hammer and sickle—symbols associated with regimes that persecuted and imprisoned millions of people.

Today, you are free to take to the streets, shout against the government, criticize institutions, and wave your flags precisely because you live in a democracy that grants you these freedoms. Under an authoritarian regime of that kind, protesting against those in power could have landed you in prison.

This is not about denying the existence of social injustices, inequalities, or the right to fight for a better world. You are free to take to the streets to demand a more just society—but you should not idealize a system that denied so many people the very things you are free to exercise today: the right to choose, to believe, to speak, and to dissent. Before wearing a T-shirt with "CCCP" on it, listen to those who experienced that world. Talk to the deportees and their descendants; read the accounts of those who endured the gulags and forced exile to Siberia. Learn what it meant to be stripped of your freedom, your home, your loved ones—and even any prospect of a normal life—simply because of your background or your beliefs.

Before waving the hammer and sickle, please, study history thoroughly.”

[Christo Grozev @christogrozev]

One thing Trump is terrible at is keeping secrets. Listen to this foreshadowing. And remember it when a "new initiative" from the "right Ukrainians" surfaces in a month or so.

[The Kyiv Independent @KyivIndependent]

⚡️Order limiting Starlink access for Ukraine's military came from within White House, Reuters reports.

https://t.co/a7PLvqwOBG

[Simon Maechling @simonmaechling]

Not a bot. I’m a real human. I’m a chemist. And apparently defending science is controversial on X.

Vaccines save lives.
Chemistry saves lives.
Evidence matters more than opinions.

Yet scientists are often drowned out by people who have never set foot in a laboratory.

I think it’s time more scientists started speaking up.

Chemists. Biologists. Physicists. Doctors. Researchers. Engineers.

We need your voices outside the laboratory.

So here’s a little experiment.

If you work in science, introduce yourself. Tell us what you do. 👋

Let’s remind X how many real scientists are out there.

Bonus points if you have a dog too! 🐶

[The Kyiv Independent @KyivIndependent]

⚡️Update: Several power plants struck in Russian missile attack on Kyiv.

Several power plants were struck in the capital overnight, an energy official told the Kyiv Independent, as Russia continues to intensify its attacks on energy infrastructure.

https://t.co/myIn2TTG5j

[Gianl1974 @Gianl1974]

😡 Preliminary reports indicate that Russia launched an attack on Kharkiv using 10 "Shahed" drones. Civilian infrastructure was targeted, and currently, 8 people are reported to be injured, - Head of the Regional Military Administration, Oleg Sinegubov.

According to him:

♦️ In the Kholodnohirskyi district, a 4-story residential building was hit, resulting in the destruction of an entire section. At least 10 private houses were also damaged.

♦️ In the Shevchenkivskyi district, the occupiers struck a 5-story residential building. A bank on the first floor of the building and 6 cars caught fire, and the windows of three apartment buildings were damaged.

[Julia Davis @JuliaDavisNews]

Meanwhile in Russia: state TV host Vladimir Solovyov and his guests basked in the glow of the diesel deal with America and predicted that Trump would help Moscow to get rid of Zelensky.
https://t.co/3cbm1TLuMp

[Timothy Snyder @TimothyDSnyder]

Well, it’s a quick take, and no doubt data will come in, but it sure looks like based on today’s evidence that a lot of pro-Trump and pro-AfD bot work depends directly on Russian data centers.

[Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський @ZelenskyyUa]

People are dying, and he thinks it’s “interesting”... Dumbass.

[Mikhail Khodorkovsky @khodorkovsky_en]

Today marks 20 years since Novaya Gazeta journalist Anna Politkovskaya was murdered in Moscow. She recognized Putin's true nature earlier than most—and the regime could never erase the truth she died to tell.

[Mikhail Khodorkovsky @khodorkovsky_en]

Putin: The war will continue until its root causes are eliminated.

The root cause of the war:

[Susanne von Dewitz @SusanneDewitz]

@AnnaDeMilanese Gibt es die Mitglieder des Sicherheitsrates denn noch oder sind das KI-generierte Videos für die one man show?

[Nikola Repin @nikorepi]

"Já jsem válka."
RU herec Nikita Kukuškin (žijící v Německu) a jeho remake známého US protiválečného klipu zasazený do současnosti.
CZ titulky (možná bude nutné rozkliknout)

[Oleksii MAKEIEV 🇺🇦 @Makeiev]

2/
Deshalb bitte ich Sie um etwas Persönliches und Konkretes:

Unterstützen Sie die Initiative „Sichere Schule“ von @ZelenskaUA.

Kinder brauchen Schutzräume.
Wenn Raketen kommen, müssen Kinder sicher sein.
Und trotzdem lernen können.

https://t.co/2PlFlirJ2m