Europeans suffer from Russophobic brainwashing

I have visited Donbass many times, since the start of the conflict in Slaviansk, and I continue to visit the region regularly. For me as a correspondent, it is very important to understand the situation. It seems to me, that the situation has improved a little since the beginning of the war. Last year I was in Donetsk. I heard shots every day, the city was under firing. Donetsk and Lugansk have died out. Two months ago I visited them again – the situation has improved. There was life on the streets, shops were opened, there was medicine in drugstores. It seems to me that the DPR wants to become a new state and is doing a lot towards that end.

Currently it is very difficult to predict the future. It depends on many factors, first of all on geopolitical developments. I am convinced that the war on Donbass is not just a local conflict. It is a part of the general front stretching from the Baltic to Libya. Therefore the result of the war on Donbass depends on the development of the geopolitical situation between the West and the Russian Federation.

We know that the NATO alliance recently demonstrated its power near Russia's borders. Thousands of soldiers, land and air forces participated in the "Anaconda" war games. The need for these maneuvers was explained by the alleged increasing threat from Russia. Russia is said to be an aggressor who wants to conquer Europe. I think that this demonstration is a very bad sign - we know history – the last war with the West cost Russia more than twenty million lives. I hope that history won't repeat itself again.

It is necessary to specify that the war which is waged against Russia is not traditional type of war. It is a hybrid war. We’ve seen the economic phase – numerous sanctions against Russia. Information war – propaganda in Mass Media, which brainwashes the European and American population to welcome this war. The main European newspapers, magazines, and TV channels constantly demonize Russia and declare that it is responsible for all of Europe's problems.

Italy has lost its sovereignty in making decisions on international issues. It only follows orders from Brussels and Washington. Sanctions against Russia have the secondary effect of boomeranging back on Italy. Before the sanctions, Italy was the second largest food exporter from Europe to Russia. Now we have lost this market. It is clear that Italy has suffered from the sanctions, but we continue to follow orders from the European Union. Several large regions in Italy had organized referendums in which people voted against sanctions and recognized the Crimea as part of Russia. But the decision on this question depends on the government, which determines nothing without orders from America or Brussels.

Every time I return home with materials written from Donbass, I face too many difficulties in their distribution. None of the large national newspapers or TV channels wants these materials. In spite of the fact that the war continues, the Italian mass media refuses to cover the topic of Donbass at all. Nobody, with the rare exception of some private channels, speaks about this war. But everyone continues to discuss Russia. I have the impression that the public is being prepared for accepting a future major war with Russia.

I think that the chance of avoiding such a "hot" war still exists. This is possible if Trump wins the US presidency. Hillary Clinton is the war candidate. She will continue the policy of aggression against Russia. On the other hand Donald Trump is unpredictable, but his victory can plan a new course in international policy. Currently, too many people are speaking about war. It seems to me that people don't realize the fact that a third world war is going to be an atomic war. Nobody will benefit from such a war.