Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Batman against Joker: Putin is losing this war.

Putin is losing this war, not because he is weak, but because his PR is outdated, old-fashioned, because he's over-confident, and is being driven by anger.
Putin is bombing a Ukrainian TV building, as if we were in the 1970s, and Zelensky is broadcasting to the whole world via Twitter from the palm of his hand. Thus the bombing of the media looks very bad but does not harm the broadcasting capacity of the Ukrainians. Putin does not understand that in his outdated methods he harms himself and glorifies the President of Ukraine even more.

The war is on Twitter and Telegram, not on the ground.

Theoretically, Putin may have justifiable reasons to fight for the demilitarizion of Ukraine, as legitimate self defense. As practically no one knows what those reasons are, thanks to effective Zelensky’s social media campaign, everyone has good reason to be against what Russia is doing in Ukraine.

Putin has lost the heart and minds of his supporters at home and abroad. He has also made President Zelensky, the person who started this war by welcoming NATO to Russia’s borders, and who used to be such an unpopular Ukraine President, into his country's darling and the world’s hero.

In contrast, the President of Ukraine has made Twitter and his iPhone the most powerful weapon in his war against Putin.

No one now even remembers that he - and not Putin - set this war in motion, by welcoming NATO’s nuclear weapons on Russia's borders.

The West must defend Ukraine. That was the commitment given to Ukraine in exchange for its dismantling of its nuclear weapons. The West must honour this commitment also because it’s a good demonstration to convince Iran to give up its nuclear programme with guarantee that no one will attack them.

But the West must also not implicitly declare war on Russia by placing weapons on its border with Ukraine, because there is no reason for Russia to agree to this and not take military action to eliminate this real threat. The West should not do this because the price for this unnecessary provocation of the West against Russia is being paid by Ukraine. When two elephants fight, it's the grass that suffers.

In round-the-clock talks with world leaders, Zelensky managed to persuade them with surprising speed to impose severe sanctions on Russia, drastic measures that a week ago were unimaginable. Sanctions that punish not only Russia and millions of innocent Russian citizens, but also the citizens of Germany,and the rest of the EU (who will end up paying much more for their food and energy).

In Europe, one of the leaders said about Zelensky: "We have great reverence for him. He is changing Europe". And he is right. Zelensky is winning the war by using weapons that Putin - and the EU leaders - do not understand: social media.

In a flood of phone calls and tweets from besieged Kiev, President Zelensky has managed to persuade the West to impose previously unimaginable sanctions on Russia, against their own citizens interests, with the decision-making also driven by the European publics' reaction to the heroism of his people.

Putin's clumsy efforts have managed to unite all Ukrainians against the Russians, their natural brothers. And to unite the EU against Russia, its strategic trade partner.

Putin is armed with an old-fashioned, outdated propaganda weapons let over from the Cold War. His dysfunctional PR is working against him and not against whoever he is targeting. And this is making him angry, and his anger is pushing him to make tactical and strategic mistakes.

In the age of social media, PR is the weapon that will win or lose a war.

This is the weapon the President of Ukraine has mastered and is deploying to great effect on the world stage. It is also a language and delivery system that Putin clearly does not understand at all. Putin is stuck using old-fashioned Iron Curtain tactics, as if playing only to a private audience of Siloviki sycophants in his Kremlin Court. Unlike his Ukrainian counterpart, he doesn't realise they're both on the world stage, under the harsh glare of the spotlight. The more Putin tries to bully Zelensky, the more popular Zelensky becomes.

Russia’s old-fashioned PR isn’t winning the hearts of his Ukrainian opponents: it's losing the hearts of his international supporters, and creating dangerous opposition at home.

Let's put this in a historical context. The anti-government rebels in Hong Kong for a whole year carried out violent demonstrations and acts of terrorism, much more serious than what the pro-Trump demonstrators in Capitol Hill did in just one day. And that was enough for the Democrats to revoke many of the democratic and civil rights of 84 million Americans. But no one remembers that inconvenient fact. Everyone thinks that the Democrats are really in favor of democracy, only because those who call themselves Democrats have made ingenious use of the public relations power of social networks. In the Hong Kong anti-government saga, China made the same mistakes that Putin is making today: outdated public relations tactics that worked against the China and HK governments, and not against those at whom they were directed. So everyone is still sure that China is the one that abolished democracy in Hong Kong, while in practice Britain had never allowed Hong Kong to be a democracy, so there was nothing to abolish at all.

When Putin fires a missile at a Ukrainian residential building the world is outraged. And rightly so.
When the United States shells hospitals, schools and kills thousands of children in Iraq, everyone applauds, mindlessly accepting the reporting of this as "collateral damage" and the West arresting the journalist who exposed this war crimes in what we wrongly believed was a freedom of press.

When the United States exterminates millions of innocent civilians in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, everyone calls it a victory for the free world and not a crime against humanity. This is the power of public relations as a weapon.

PR was a weapon that was invented by the Soviet Union. It has since been re-invented by the Silicon Valley with new features. It seem that Putin has not learned how to use it, and is holding the loaded rifle with the barrel aimed at his head.

And by Putin pushed to the wall, the world is less safe place.
AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Trump Says Ukraine Can Fully Restore Borders with NATO Backing
Europe Signals Stronger Support for Taiwan at Major Taipei Defence Show
Germany Weighs Excluding France from Key European Fighter Jet Programme
Cyberattack Disrupts Check-in and Boarding Systems at Major European Airports
Björn Borg Breaks Silence: Memoir Reveals Addiction, Shame and Cancer Battle
When Extremism Hijacks Idealism: How the Baader-Meinhof Gang Emerged and Fell
JWST Data Brings TRAPPIST-1e Closer to Earth-Like Habitability
Trump Orders $100,000 Fee on H-1B Visas and Launches ‘Gold Card’ Immigration Pathway
France’s Looming Budget Crisis and Political Fracture Raise Fears of Becoming Europe’s “Sick Man”
Three Russian MiG-31 Jets Breach Estonian Airspace in ‘Unprecedentedly Brazen’ NATO Incident
European manufacturers against ban on polluting cars: "The industry may collapse"
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
Christian Brueckner Released from German Prison after Serving Unrelated Sentence
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
The conservative right spreads westward: a huge achievement for 'Alternative for Germany' in local elections
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
The New Life of Novak Djokovic
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
France Erupts in Mass ‘Block Everything’ Protests on New PM’s First Day
Poland Shoots Down Russian Drones in Airspace Violation During Ukraine Attack
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Macron Appoints Sébastien Lecornu as Prime Minister Amid Budget Crisis and Political Turmoil
Vatican hosts first Catholic LGBTQ pilgrimage
Apple Unveils iPhone 17 Series, iPhone Air, Apple Watch 11 and More at 'Awe Dropping' Event
France joins Eurozone’s ‘periphery’ as turmoil deepens, say investors
France Faces New Political Crisis, again, as Prime Minister Bayrou Pushed Out
Nayib Bukele Points Out Belgian Hypocrisy as Brussels Considers Sending Army into the Streets
France, at an Impasse, Heads Toward Another Government Collapse
×