Russian propaganda—much like the Russian state itself—appears to know no limits, especially when directed at nations and states that the Kremlin does not like.
Joseph Stalin was once showered with hundreds of grandiose titles such as “Leader of Mankind,” “Father of Nations,” “Greatest Genius of the Ages,” “Standard Bearer of Peace,” “Titan of Thought,” and even “Great Linguist.” Vladimir Putin may lag far behind Stalin in this regard, but he certainly has a chance for the title of “Great Linguist.” According to Tatyana Fadeyeva, an associate professor in the Department of Slavic Studies, General Linguistics, and Communication Culture at the State University of Education, some of Putin’s expressions may well find their way into Russian dictionaries as aphorisms.
She was referring to the term “европейские подсвинки” (“European piglets”), which the Russian president used in reference to Ukraine, while addressing the extended board of the Ministry of National Defence when he mentioned Ukraine.
“President Trump says that if he had been president then, none of this would have happened. Perhaps that is so, because the previous administration deliberately led to the armed conflict. And I think it is clear why. Everyone assumed that Russia would be destroyed in a short time, that it would disintegrate, and that the ‘European piglets’ would immediately join the efforts of the previous American administration, hoping to profit from the collapse of our country—by reclaiming what was lost in earlier historical periods and taking revenge. As has now become obvious to everyone, all these attempts and destructive plans against Russia have completely failed,” said Putin.
Выступление Владимира Путина на расширенной коллегии Минобороны
However, we would like to add that the official English translation on the kremlin.ru website uses the term “swine underlings” (literally: “pig subordinates” or “subordinate pigs” or “pig lackeys”). This was also reported by TASS.
ТАСС: раскрыт официальный перевод слов Путина про „европейских подсвинков”
The term quickly gained popularity among Russian propagandists. For example, television host Yevgeny Popov used it on the talk show “60 Minutes,” falsely claiming that Finland, Germany, Poland, Romania, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Norway, and even Sweden all harbor territorial ambitions toward Russia.
Poland was portrayed as a country allegedly dreaming not only of annexing western Ukraine but also of restoring borders stretching “from sea to sea.”
“Warsaw has not abandoned its dreams of a Poland ‘from sea to sea.’ The hyena of Europe lays claim not only to the western regions of Ukraine but also to the territory of Belarus and to our native lands—from Smolensk to Kuban. The Poles also want to get their hands on Kaliningrad, which they label as ‘Królewiec’ on their maps,” Popov lied.
Norway, too, was assigned a role in this fabricated narrative. According to Popov, the country is “actively militarising the neutral island of Spitsbergen and seeking to seize our oil and gas reserves on the Arctic shelf.”
Sweden’s inclusion raises even more questions, given that it does not border Russia. Nevertheless, Popov offered an explanation:
“The Swedes, meanwhile, dream of boarding up the ‘window to Europe’ opened by Peter I and of taking revenge for the great-power status they lost in the eighteenth century.” By this logic, one might ask whether Sweden is supposedly planning to occupy St. Petersburg, a city founded by Peter I precisely as Russia’s “window to Europe.”
In this context, it is surprising that Popov neglected to mention Britain and France, which sent troops to Crimea during the Crimean War (1853–1856). By the same reasoning, they too must surely be plotting to seize the peninsula today. And since the Kingdom of Sardinia was their ally at the time, Italy could easily be added to the list as well.
Igor Hrywna
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