Donetsk: Deadly blast hits market in Russia-held Ukraine city, officials say
BBC NewsJAN 2024
Ukraine: Russia Presses Forward in the East
Image copyright: Kostya Liberov/Libkos/Getty Images News via Getty Images
The Spin
Pro-establishment narrative
Russia's troops are poorly trained and poorly coordinated. For this reason, they've largely been unable to dislodge Ukrainian defenders from their positions. This is best shown in the Kherson region, but it's also largely true of the Russian war effort elsewhere. Russia's small gains so far have been insignificant in the wider scope of the conflict.
Establishment-critical narrative
Despite what's reported in the media, all is not well in Ukraine. For one, it has lost virtually a whole generation of men. If they're not still on the frontlines and haven't already been killed, they've fled the country to avoid the fighting. Now, Russia is making sweeping advances and thousands more Ukrainian troops will perish without good reason. Ukraine needs to negotiate for peace to avoid this unnecessary sacrifice of men.