Published
Video length: 3 min
The former arms trafficker, Viktor Bout, Russian propaganda sales representative
A documentary looks at the propaganda distilled by the Kremlin in order to dissuade NATO countries from supplying weapons to Ukraine. – (First Lines)
The documentary “Ukraine, the cost of arms”, broadcast on Sunday on France 5, focuses on the issues surrounding arms deliveries.
Undermining support for Ukraine at all costs has been the Kremlin’s credo since the start of the Russian invasion. To discredit the European Union and the United States, the main allies of the country led by Volodymyr Zelensky, techniques for manipulating public opinion are increasing. One of them specifically targets the weapons supplied by NATO countries to Ukraine and the supposed misuse of their large-scale use.
The documentary Ukraine, the cost of weapons, directed by Hugo Van Offel and Martin Boudot, tells in detail how Western countries provide military equipment to the Ukrainians, describes the rearmament of Europe and how the exponential market for increasingly sophisticated weapons arouses desire and profits. The film also highlights Russia’s forceful disinformation campaigns to limit military aid to the Ukrainians.
A disinformation strategy
From September 2022, six months after the start of the conflict, Moscow sets in motion its propaganda war machine regarding the delivery of weapons to Ukraine. At the UN, Russia is trying to scare Europe by evoking the idea that this military equipment could end up in the hands of terrorists or dangerous criminals scattered throughout the world, because of corrupt Ukrainians. A very clear way to play on fear.
“It is about degrading the image of Ukraine in general and in particular trying to show that this weaponry that we are providing will be found everywhere and in particular against us.”
Michel Goya, military expertin the documentary “Ukraine, the cost of weapons”
To hammer home and embody its message, the Kremlin places Viktor Bout on the front line. Ironically, this explosive character is a former arms trafficker. Arrested in 2008 in Thailand, then extradited to the United States, he served a 25-year prison sentence there before being released in December 2022 in exchange for an American basketball player. Since his return to Russia, the latter has been involved in politics in the service of the Kremlin.
A speech of intimidation
After negotiations which lasted almost a year, Viktor Bout agreed to testify in the documentary. From his first words, the one that partly inspired the film Lord of War denounces the aid provided by France to Ukraine. “I don’t know what General de Gaulle would have said, if he had been alivethus strikes the former arms trafficker. But he would certainly have had very harsh words about France’s current position and its support.” Viktor Bout then delivers the speech intended to intimidate Ukraine’s allies, going so far as to use the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
“The weapons provided by the United States and NATO countries end up in the hands of Hamas, during its operations against Israel. But also in the drug cartels in Mexico. And sooner or later, you know, these weapons will reappear in Europe.”
Viktor Bout, former arms traffickerin the documentary “Ukraine, the cost of weapons”
A strategy which seems to be bearing fruit in this conflict with unbalanced power relations, which will enter its third year. The NATO countries, and especially the United States, seem increasingly reluctant to respond to the needs of Ukraine, whose demand for weapons is increasingly intense. The United States has already spent 45 billion dollars in military aid, the European Union 17 billion euros.
The documentary Ukraine, the cost of weapons directed by Hugo Van Offel and Martin Boudot is broadcast on Sunday February 25 at 9:05 p.m. on France 5 and on France.tv.