Russia vs Ukraine: The War of Stories & Storytellers

During my school years, I would often read biographies of the famous and the notorious, with the likes of Napoleon, Churchill, Stalin and Hitler topping the list. One perspective was never enough, so it was always important to read at least two authors on one and the same subject, hoping for a more nuanced approach and a more refined understanding of, say, how it came about that a diligent seminary student and an unfulfilled painter would eventually define much of the 20th century, in a global, not merely domestic sense. It's probably fair to say that these two leaders alone jointly filled up just about every minute of mankind's darkest hour.

Back then, just like today, sophisticated propaganda, disinformation, fear-mongering and multi-layered ideological warfare were among the most effective success determinants, especially on the way to becoming an authoritarian figure or a dictator.

The age of the new old

Time flies, but, as irony would have it, in today's Europe, you are (still) free to witness just about every stage of that 'notorious evolution' unfold before our very eyes, both in and outside the EU. Yesterday, Hungary elected its new-old leader. Despite Orban's glaringly obvious record as Putin's sympathiser and "freedom fighter" (as in 'the one fighting against freedom: free opposition, free speech, free democracy, free media, free judiciary, etc.').

Poland has not plunged this deep into the abyss of ethical corruption yet, but what Kaczyński's Law and Justice has been busy doing over the past 6 years is certainly not dissimilar in its key trajectories (see illegal and unethical state media control, attempted political subjugation of the judiciary, Constitutional Court, regularly provoking and antagonizing just about every EU institution out there, stirring up anti-EU sentiments across the board, etc.). Worse still, Orban has long been presented by Kaczyński and his pack, quite literally, as a paragon of true (European) virtues. Have the past few weeks been a powerful wake-up call? Not really.

Russia: key questions in 2022

Almost 80 years have passed since the end of the last global conflict of catastrophic proportions, with Cold War, Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan and a long list of other conflict zones in the Middle East, Asia and Africa. And yet, given what's already happened in Ukraine, over the past 39 days (ONLY!), it's fair to say that one of the most bitterly ironic difference between 2022 and 1940s is having Wi-Fi access inside a bunker or the basement of your apartment.

One may laugh at the triviality of such facts, but it may eventually turn out that in this 'war of stories' the better, more powerful storyteller will eventually prevail, even if some of those stories are inevitably addressed to one of the most intellectually and ethically oleophobic societies in the world, modern Russia. Why? Because no rational, geopolitical and especially ethical explanation could possibly ever justify what Russian 'soldiers' are doing to (the free and independent!) nation of Ukraine, not to mention the apocalyptic destruction of CIVILIAN infrastructure, homes, hospitals, schools taking place on a massive scale. This is a war to kill and destroy and as such cannot be forgiven, overlooked or explained in any way that would credibly justify any of Putin's actions.

Now, you are, of course, free to use any of the NATO-ralated, spheres-of-influence, or even let's-rebuild-the-mythical-Soviet-Union stories you like, but the fact remains the only thing you will end up proving with such 'logic' is your very own, intellectual and ethical corruption. It's really as simple as that! None of these things could ever justify a single civilian death inflicted on a free, non-violent, peace-loving, hard-working, well-educated, aspiring nation, right across the EU/NATO border.

But if, for whatever reason, you are still in two minds, ask yourself any of these questions:

1. Is today's Russia a country where you can freely criticize its government/leaders?
2. How transparent are elections in Russia and what happens to you when your status as an opposition leader becomes a little too prominent?
3. Has any journalist ever been murdered by the regime (on a symbolic date, no less)?
4. How many free media do you have in Russia?
5. How is it even possible that in a society that has (more or less freely) seen and travelled the world over the past decades, the logic of 'special operation' and 'denazification' and the death and migration of millions that follows doesn't result in and immediate(!) ousting of the tyrant who set this in motion?
6. How trustworthy is Vladimir Putin as a person - literally, how many sentences that come out of his mouth prove to be true?

There are literally hundreds of questions like this that this 'poor old' brainwashed society under one of Europe's longest serving tsar's has long stopped asking itself. Or, it doesn't really matter any more, does it? Which is worse, you might ask?

A Blitzkrieg that never was

Looking at Ukraine and Volodymyr Zelensky today, I am reminded of one of Churchill's most famous quotes: Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few. Now, you may think this comparison alone is an exaggeration. Similarly, you would likely have thought Russia would never invade Ukraine in a full-scale military invasion, let alone call it a 'special military operation' with 'denazification' in mind.

Now, imagine Putin's original Blitzkrieg plan had worked and he succeeded in installing a puppet government overnight in Kiev, along with a strong military presence across Ukraine. Now, pause a little and think of the moral, geopolitical and strategic consequences for a minute. If the world did next to nothing (over and above what it has done under today's circumstances), as it no doubt would, we would all be in a very different situation today. How about the two fundamental reasons why it didn't work?

1. Prior to this war, Ukrainians had experienced more than enough food-for-thought imagery in the "This is Russia!" category since 2014. The last eight-years of defending their homeland made them realize who they are up against and how merciless, barbaric and 'ethnically condescending' their Slavic brethren are, despite innumerable and infinitely diverse cultural ties between Russia and Ukraine. They realized what 20+ years of an authoritarian regime, Russian-superiority storytelling and massive, state-media propaganda can do to millions of brains at a time. Worse still, what those brains are prepared to put up with and turn a blind eye to in order to keep the long-dead myth going.
2. Fortunately, Putin literally had no choice but to wait for the Winter Olympics in China to end. Clearly, he may have achieved a lot more (both psychologically and militarily) if his invasion could start two months earlier.

One war, two stories

Never in the history of mankind has one leader spoken to so many other leaders, presidents, prime ministers, celebrities, business icons, actors and outstanding journalists over such a short period of time.

The other day I was invited to deliver a keynote focused on the evolution of Volodymyr Zelensky, a former comedian, actor, film producer who (as it turns out) was born to make the world watch, listen and stop looking away. Preparations and in-depth research into this topic proved to be a truly thought-provoking experience in its own right, constantly pushing me to explore new questions, micro-analyses and directions.

Looking into Zelensky's evolution with the business people and IT project managers in the audience on that day, we talked about leadership theory, the power of image and the way leadership priorities and key characteristics evolve under specific circumstances, about the storytelling dimension to Zelensky's leadership and his evolving communication strategy under extreme risk scenarios, and finally, at his social-media personas, past and present.?

Ukraine's Youngest Minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, was reputedly instrumental in shaping Zelensky's powerful social media persona. Looking at Zelensky's Instagram account alone is interesting enough: over 300 hundred posts since the beginning of the war! A more detailed analysis reveals a lot of conscious decision-making behind it, all the way from clothing, colours, framing, presentation style to body language or tagging. And that isn't even Zelensky's most important medium in terms of political influence. Analyzing the key differences between his Twitter, YouTube and TikTok presence is yet another interesting layer for comparative analysis.

Now, this is not to say that his social-media/storytelling strategy is flawless. It could (and perhaps should!) be far better, more powerful/diverse on multiple fronts, in fact. However, given the circumstances he and his team have been operating under, it's beyond spectacular and infinitely better and more mature than what we have seen from any other world leader to date! And if you contrast it with that of another Vladimir, the clash of the two worlds makes the latter a living caricature of a leader: stiff, formal, surrounded by rotary-dial phones ;) and Soviet-Union-style insignia, not to mention the 'good-old-tried-and-tested-speak-to-intimidate-and-scare' style of leadership.

And so, it might just turn out, that after (and before?) the infamous era of Donald Trump and the cancel culture his dim-witted, hyper-influential tweets set in motion, Volodymyr Zelensky may have 'single-handedly' resuscitated the highest possible value social media could (and should) be bringing to the world. He literally gave Twitter a new face, one of a hugely influential force for good. Even TikTok, a very different, entertainment-centric platform, has played a hugely important, positive role in this war as well.

Numbers don't tell stories, people do!

Looking at the scale of this war, things may sometimes be really difficult to imagine, if not overwhelming, thanks, partly, to our psychological immune systems: what it has ALREADY DONE to LITERALLY MILLIONS OF PEOPLE. So let me try and explain some of it visually, without using a single image of war, or even a single person affected.

Last week, one of my institutional/business clients (a business park comprising four office buildings) became an important voice on the already-impressively-diverse stage of "Help Ukraine!" initiatives, by designating some of its active office-building space to a special reception point for Ukrainian refugees, in partnership with the Ma?opolska Region Governor's Office and with the support of Save the Children, IKEA, Biedronka (a retail chain) and many others. Earlier, Eximius Park posted a simple video to share at least some of the positive energy and the volunteering enthusiasm of the preparations.

I thought I'd share with you instead a somewhat more personal perspective on what this contribution really means and how I see it, not as a client or a business partner, but as a friend, as a human being.

This place can accommodate up to 200 refugees. Multiply it be 10,000 and you won't even get close to how many Ukrainians have crossed the Polish border since February 24.

Words, words, words...

Let me leave you with the full voice-over script I wrote for this clip:

At the beginning of March 2022, about 140,000 refugees from Ukraine crossed the Polish border, each and every day. Two weeks later, the total number of Ukrainian refugees grew to 2 million. What happened in Poland during the past 40 days is beyond extraordinary.?The world has probably never seen so much collective goodwill, expressed in so many different charity, hospitality and support initiatives and gestures, set in motion on such a massive scale, within such a short period time. Much of it, spontaneously, person to person, heart to heart.

Numbers, however large, can be a little too impersonal, intimidating or hard to relate to, unless you can see them with your own eyes, experience the scale, know at least one person affected directly, or imagine at least some of their?complexity of outcomes.

This is not a typical wardrobe with toys and clothes for children.?It’s not a children’s room, either. This is a business park, with over a dozen international companies operating here on a daily basis. What makes it different is that it now also houses a special reception point for refugees, people seeking shelter, a moment of peace and quiet, comfort, dignity and maybe even a little bit of joy. This special reception point has been set up by the Ma?opolska Region Governor’s Office, in cooperation and with the support of companies and institutions, like IKEA, AMAZON, Biedronka, the Save the Children Foundation, government agencies, private donors, like employees of First Property Group, the Park’s operator. With this effort, we will hopefully succeed in restoring at least some of the sense of dignity and comfort these 200 people were so barbarically deprived of, overnight, following one man’s decision. 200 hundred people, 200 stories of personal tragedy, love, hope…out of over 2 million who have already crossed the Polish border. Imagine 10,000 places like this, with all of the supplies and logistics required. Fortunately, they will hopefully never be needed. In this war, millions have responded to the millions in need, and the whole world rushed to lend a helping hand.?Last but certainly not least, the people who stayed to defend their war-torn homeland, to prevent what is already immeasurable suffering from spreading, to preserve their right to the most fundamental freedoms and human rights, to make sure no man can ever cause this much pain to a nation defending their home.

#STOPTHEWAR