I noted in my last piece that Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova needs to brush up on her World War II history. Still, Zakharova isn’t just historically illiterate. She has other reasons for her derisive attitude towards the D-Day landings.
As Zakharova put it:
#Zakharova: The Normandy landings were not a game-changer for the outcome of WWII and the Great Patriotic War. The outcome was determined by the Red Army’s victories – mainly, in Stalingrad and Kursk. For three years, the UK and then the US dragged out opening the second front pic.twitter.com/LhzkEzNCQN
— MFA Russia ?? (@mfa_russia) June 5, 2019
Why would a senior Russian official be so petulant on such a great anniversary?
Simple. Because of political opportunity.
While we view the Normandy landings and the broader Second World War in the prism of history, Vladimir Putin’s government sees the war as a contemporary political tool. Defined by the immense suffering of the Soviet peoples during their four-year struggle against Nazism, the “great patriotic war” has an almost holy quality in Russian hearts and minds. This gives Putin, a master of manipulation, an opportunity to use the war to support his broader policy interests. Specifically, referencing a time of great hardship in order to encourage Russians to tolerate their meager living standards. But this politicization also supports Putin’s use of the war for his foreign policy.
There’s also the more basic point of populist pride here.
Russians are rightly proud of what their family members suffered during the struggle against Nazism. They fought to survive against great odds. Survive they did. But thanks to a less-than-objective recording of history in Russian textbooks, the other Allied powers are commonly regarded by Russians as very secondary participants to victory. Reinforcing the understanding of Russia’s supreme victory, Zakharova thus strokes the ego of the Russian people.
In short, what we’re seeing here is a messaging strategy designed to maximize Putin’s power and popularity.
