East vs West: Media Conflict – Perspectives on Russia and Ukraine
To gain a better perspective on the duality of media’s portrayal of reality, we would like to introduce East vs West: Media Conflict. Every so often, we will bring you two stories that have dramatically different explanations of the news. Just seeing the headlines next to each other makes you wonder, “Who do I trust? What is the truth?” We feel these are the two best questions any of our readers can ask themselves, regardless of the source. This week, we look at the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
Mission completed: Moscow confirms delivery of aid to E. Ukraine, trucks return to Russiavia Russia TimesRussia’s Foreign Ministry has confirmed humanitarian aid has been delivered to the besieged city of Lugansk in eastern Ukraine. Meanwhile all trucks that delivered aid had returned to Russia. “We express our satisfaction that the Russian humanitarian aid for those in need in southeastern Ukraine has been delivered as intended. We were motivated only by the goal of helping civilian citizens in need,”the statement read. All trucks have returned empty, Ukrainian and Russian border guards confirmed, Russian Deputy Emergency Minister Eduard Chizhikov said. “There were 227 trucks in the humanitarian operation participating in the operation, and they have all returned. All those vehicles have been searched by the representatives of the customs and border control, both on the Ukrainian and Russian side. No issues have been pointed out. All vehicles were empty upon returning, and the media representatives checked that, too, while they were filming the search,” Chizhikov stated. The Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) also confirmed that all 227 vehicles that entered Ukraine as part of a Russian aid convoy have now returned home. |
Russians Open Fire in Ukraine, NATO Reportsvia New York TimesRussia on Friday escalated tensions with Ukraine to the highest level since its stealthy invasion of Crimea in the spring, sending more than 200 trucks from a long-stalled aid convoy into rebel-held eastern Ukraine over the objections of Kiev and, NATO said, conducting military operations on Ukrainian territory. NATO officials said that the Russian military had moved artillery units inside Ukrainian territory in recent days and was using them to fire at Ukrainian forces. Russia has repeatedly denied sending troops or military hardware into Ukraine, just as it denied any link to the unidentified gunmen who paved the way for Moscow’s annexation of Crimea — until President Vladimir V. Putin stated in April that Russian troops were “of course” involved. There has been “a major escalation in Russian military involvement in eastern Ukraine since mid-August, including the use of Russian forces,” Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen of NATO said in a statement. “Russian artillery support — both cross-border and from within Ukraine — is being employed against the Ukrainian armed forces,” Mr. Rasmussen added. Russia’s Permanent Mission to NATO, in a statement, accused the alliance of indifference to humanitarian suffering in eastern Ukraine and described its protests over the entry of a Russian aid convoy into Ukraine without Red Cross escorts as “another cynical attempt to cover the crimes of Ukrainian authorities.” Mr. Rasmussen did not say how many Russian artillery pieces had moved into Ukraine or where they were located, but one Western official said the number of Russian-operated artillery units was “substantial.” |
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