Watching the war on Russian TV - a prisoners view

This article is part of a serie devoted to the insider’s perspective of a political prisoner incarcerated in Russia. 

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The first thought that sprung to mind when confronted with unexpected news on Russian television was: “Can the world really be just one step away from WWIII?”

Here I must explain my situation so that the reader can fully understand both why the news came as a surprise to me, as well as the feelings that overwhelmed me. I am one of thousands of Russian political prisoners, and therefore my access to information about what is happening in the world is extremely limited. For this reason, I have to “read between the lines” in the “news” that Russian propaganda “feeds” us, relying on my own capacity for critical thinking. 

Therefore, dear reader, I must explain myself, so that you can make sense of the direction of my argument and the depth of my distress over a moral dilemma. It is what many Russian citizens experience in anticipation of the multitude of questions that you might have. I belong to that segment of the Russian people who do not equate the Russian president and his retinue with Russia, for whom the current government is not the Russian nation. This is the source of a moral dilemma: on the one hand we cannot wish harm to Russia and the Russian people, on the other hand, both in the international arena and domestically today’s Russian government is perpetrating a vile crime that must somehow be opposed and halted. The more heated passions get, the more the situation in the world escalates, egged on by Russia, the more intensely our moral contradictions tear us apart inside. They cause real ethical anguish because we cannot desire the ruin of our homeland and its people. At the same time, we cannot possibly accept the crime that the Russian government is committing using the Russian people as pawns. It is precisely our disagreement with the actions of our government and with what is happening in Russia, our opposition to this crime that condemns us to Russia’s dungeons. And I am no exception.

But even these conditions of imprisonment cannot by themselves nullify our ethical anguish, yet neither do they in any way solve our internal moral dilemma. For this reason, even as we sit here in “captivity”, we seek the means to say “No” to what the current government in Russia is doing. This government is not a personification of the Russian people: its leaders came to power because truly democratic elections were stolen long ago, and for about two decades the political arena has been systematically swept clear of antisystem opposition. Today’s situation has come about because of all this.

So what was the news that shocked me?

For several days in late April and early May nearly all the central TV stations were churning out news about the liberation of the Kursk region. They mentioned that “North Korean special forces stood shoulder to shoulder with Russian soldiers in liberating the Kursk region”. In describing this military “counterterrorist” operation, as it was called by the Russian government, the participation of North Korean armed forces was mentioned “in passing”, as if it was something utterly routine, not worthy of attention. By the way, even now I have no idea of how the larger global community reacted to this fact, since from here it looks like this “news” went unnoticed (but, again, I have access only to Russian TV propaganda).

One of the programs on Russian TV at the time disclosed the chronology of the involvement of the North Korean army and its participation in military operations. According to this timeline, after signing a treaty in the summer of 2024 detailing a strategic (or rather comprehensive) partnership between Russia and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, in September 2024 North Korea started transferring armed forces to Russia. These forces immediately commenced training for coordinated action with Russian troops, and in early winter began participating in military operations in the Kursk region. Furthermore, these North Korean troops were deployed to Russian territory together with some of their military equipment, which they used in combat operations.

Why did this news shock me to the point that I started thinking it was the beginning of WWIII?

Well, it was the first time during this armed conflict that one of the parties to the conflict officially admitted that the armed forces of a third state had participated in military operations! 

Of course, in telling this news the Russian propagandists emphasized that the North Korean troops participated in combat operations only on Russian territory.

But so what if the army of a third state participated only on Russian territory? The very fact of participation is a further escalation of the conflict and a huge step toward a third world war. And it was Russia that took this step.

Here I think that it is important to remember the rhetoric of Russian officials on this topic, what we have heard from them during the so-called special military operation. All this time they have been underscoring their favorite theme of how, according to Russian authorities, the governments of western countries apply a double standard. In a stream of information, they spewed out accusations about how the other side of the conflict is using western specialists etc., etc. But at the same time the North Korean army, “shoulder to shoulder” with the Russian army, liberated territory in the Kursk region. How is this not a double standard?

And what did we hear from them, what declarations were made by Russian officials, when the leaders of various countries or European diplomatic officials suggested sending troops to Ukraine, the involvement of peacekeeping forces, or the possible participation of foreign armed groups in Ukraine? That Russia won’t stand for it, and there came various proposals about a response.

And now we find out that the Russian authorities had themselves invited the army of a third state into the conflict!

So what will happen if the Ukrainian authorities now respond by mirroring this act (“mirroring” is a favorite term used by Russian authorities when describing their own actions)? What if they draw into the conflict the armed forces of a third state? And what if, like Russia and North Korea did last year, they conclude some kind of friendly treaty with allies (maybe such treaties already exist)? For example, to make the situation a perfect “mirror image”, they could invite the armed forces of a third state to participate in military operations exclusively on their own territory (like how Russian authorities justified the presence of the North Korean army by stating that they participated exclusively on the territory of the Kurstk region), such as those ongoing on the territory of the Sumy region. Then the situation would be analogous to that of the North Korean army participating in military operations in the Kursk region. In my opinion, the answer is obvious, we know where that would lead.

Thus, at any rate, if during the years of the “cold war” the clock counting down to a nuclear war was showing 23:55, now the hands on the clock showing the time to the start of World War III have ticked forward to 23:59… And that’s a shock!

In the face of this situation, it is worth considering exactly which state’s armed forces were invited to participate in military operations.

In Russia we have a wonderful saying: “Tell me who your friend is, and I will tell you who you are.”

The fact that the Democratic People's Republic of Korea is ruled by a dictatorial regime is, in my opinion, already a de-facto admission to the majority of countries of the global community. The army of the North Korean dictator was selected out of all possible Russian “allies”, among them the countries of the CSTO [Collective Security Treaty Organization, a military alliance of six post-Soviet states], which, following the logic and rhetoric of Russian authorities, could have participated on Russian territory, in the Kursk region. As I see it, this situation perfectly demonstrates what we have been witnessing for going on four years (if we don’t count the previous years of less engaged resistance). What we see is nothing other than a further confrontation of views, concepts, and ideas, with liberalism and democracy on one side, and on the other side authoritarianism striding by leaps and bounds toward dictatorship, in fact the dictatorship embodied by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

And, as we all see, the situation keeps heating up and escalation continues from both sides.

The time now is: One minute to midnight…