In today’s Vatnik Soup, we introduce Iuliia Mendel, a Ukrainian journalist and press secretary. She’s best known for serving as Zelenskyy’s spokesperson during the early years of his presidency and then, years later, turning into a Kremlin-aligned, fierce critic of him.
Born in 1986 in Zaporizhzhia (Zaporizhzhia Oblast), officially registered in Henichesk (Kherson Oblast), Iuliia grew up in Kherson (Kherson Oblast) — yes, *that* Kherson, where Russia now hunts and murders civilians for fun in a “human safari”.
Mendel studied philology at Taras Shevchenko National University, Kyiv. Before entering politics, she worked as a journalist and contributor for various Ukrainian and international media, including the New York Times and Politico.
In June 2019, after Zelenskyy won the Ukrainian presidential election in a landslide, Mendel was appointed as his press secretary. She won the job in an open competition with 4,000 applicants and quickly became one of the most visible faces of his administration.
Her tenure was marked by controversy, awkward public incidents and communication blunders that made headlines in Ukraine, such as mentioning a “President of Canada”, confusing Latvia and Lithuania or physically pushing a journalist away from Zelenskyy.
Ironically, Mendel now complains that freedom of speech in Ukraine has been “greatly restricted”. But in 2019, when she was Zelenskyy’s press secretary, Index on Censorship recorded *her* as the source of press-freedom violations.
Mendel resigned as presidential press secretary in July 2021. Even after leaving her position, she still agreed with the restrictions on pro-Russian media, calling them entirely reasonable and justified (video: December 9, 2021 interview).
While still Zelenskyy’s press secretary, Mendel unveiled her book “Each of Us Is President”. She praised Zelenskyy’s electoral “revolution” and contrasted it with Maidan’s “dirty tents” and “unhygienic cold nights” — a dismissive description of the Revolution of Dignity. bsky.app
In today's #vatniksoup and another edition of "You pronounced this nonsense, not me", I'll talk about an event called the Revolution of Dignity AKA Maidan Revolution. It was a wave of demonstrations in Ukraine that took place in 2013 and 2014. 1/24
Ukrainians were outraged, with historian Radko Mokryk commenting that it was during those “unhygienic and cold nights” that he met “the best people of the country”.
Iuliia’s second book, The Fight of Our Lives, published in September 2022, again gave a mostly positive picture of Zelenskyy: an imperfect leader, but one who stood up to Russia and defended Ukraine.
Mendel fully entered the vatnik propaganda network with her Tucker Carlson interview of May 11. A few days earlier, at the Moscow May 9 parade — generously permitted by Zelenskyy — everyone saw how weak Russia is. bsky.app
In today’s Vatnik Soup REBREW, I’ll reintroduce an American political commentator and pro-Kremlin propagandist, Tucker Carlson. He’s best known for his promotion of crazy conspiracy theories and for his support of authoritarian regimes around the world. 1/24
Iuliia pushed the opposite: Russia is strong and Ukraine must surrender. Tucker Carlson is openly “rooting for Russia”.
In the interview itself, expect the usual fake narratives and irrelevant smears. Mendel also completely twists the daily minute of silence to honour victims of the war or the constitutional prohibition on elections while martial law is in effect.
Mendel portrays Zelenskyy as corrupt and keeping the war going for his own benefit. Did she suddenly remember a completely different version of events than what she wrote in her books?
And Mendel did not end up on Tucker Carlson by accident: she approached him herself. She is “Writing a bold new exposé on the real story behind the scenes in Ukraine”, and Tucker’s show is a good means of self-promotion.
But at whose expense? She lives abroad and has the nerve to claim to be making a “sacrifice”, but she’s not the one tortured to death under Russian occupation. bsky.app
In today’s Vatnik Soup and the “Degenerate Russia” series, I’ll show you the brutal reality of Russian war crimes, in particular the horrific tortures and sexual abuses of children, women and men. Buckle up, this one is not for the faint-hearted. 1/24
Needless to say, Russian state media had a field day with the anti-Zelenskyy Tucker Carlson interview. Ironically, Iuliia once wore an RT costume for Halloween, saying it was the “scariest” she could find.
Since going full vatnik, she’s posting non-stop against Ukraine, with Russian state media systematically picking up her every tweet and making a big story out of it within hours.
Peak absurdity is reached when Russian state media uses Mendel’s interview as proof that… the Russian state has murdered even more Ukrainians than Ukraine claims, something which RT celebrates and Iuliia used to be critical of.
But even her actual words are not enough for Russian propaganda, so they *immediately* made fake covers about her interview, which were then amplified through the usual vatnik networks in each country, something they do all the time. bsky.app
Dans la #vatniksoup exclusive d’aujourd’hui, nous présentons une opération de propagande du Kremlin typique orchestrée à l’aide de sites entiers générés par IA, de vidéos deepfakes, de super-propagateurs sur les réseaux sociaux et de blanchiment de fausses informations. 1/30
Being used this transparently by the propaganda arm of a state murdering Ukrainians every day and rejoicing at bombing Ukrainian cities every day, did not give Mendel second thoughts. Instead, she doubled down.
In August, she gave another major interview to Le Journal du Dimanche — part of Vincent Bolloré’s French media empire, which he recently put at the service of Xenia Fedorova, previously head of… RT France. bsky.app
In today’s Vatnik Soup, we introduce Vincent Bolloré, a French billionaire and media tycoon. He’s best known for building a powerful media empire and for reshaping editorial lines across French media and publishing, pushing them toward far-right and pro-Kremlin positions. 1/25
On September 16, Mendel headlined an AfD-organized event at the European Parliament. Yes, that AfD, the party whose senior figures wave Russian flags and decorate their offices with Putin-fan merch and mugs bearing the logo of the Russian Army. bsky.app
In today’s Vatnik Soup, we introduce Hans-Thomas Tillschneider, a German AfD politician, Islamic-studies scholar and Putinversteher. He’s best known for playing dumb over his Russian Army mug and for shaping the AfD program ahead of Sunday’s Sachsen-Anhalt elections. 1/21
The whole vatnik network supports her now. She denied being a Russian agent or receiving payment for her political appearances, but to be clear doing this for free does not make it any better.
There are several possible reasons to go full vatnik and betray Ukraine; none of them are pretty. vatniksoup.com
vatniksoup.com
Kherson, where Iuliia grew up, is now liberated — something she hoped for and then celebrated in 2022. Was that wrong? Would Iuliia rather live under Russian occupation, where journalists can end up tortured to death?
Russian propaganda portrays Zelenskyy as an incompetent, corrupt drug addict squandering Western aid on luxury cars and mansions. If that caricature were true, Moscow would hardly need to work so hard to sell it: they would just buy him.
The reality is that Zelenskyy stands in the way of Russia occupying and looting more Ukrainian territory. Whatever his flaws, he is no corrupt servant of Putin like Viktor Yanukovych was. bsky.app
In today’s Vatnik Soup, I’ll introduce a former Ukrainian politician and president, Viktor Yanukovych. He’s best known for selling his country to Russia, trying to turn it into an authoritarian state, and eventually fleeing to Moscow once his plan failed. 1/22
Does that mean Zelenskyy is perfect? Of course not. He has made mistakes, like any wartime leader under immense pressure.
And one early mistake may very well have been hiring someone as devoid of ethics as Iuliia Mendel, who’s willing to sell out her own country in order to sell more copies of her gossip book.
Russia started this war. Putin could end it tomorrow, but instead, the Kremlin spends $5 billion a year on propaganda to manufacture support for that war through BS narratives which are then spread by vatniks like Iuliia Mendel.
Fact-based research to counter that propaganda is absolutely crucial — please support our work. vatniksoup.com
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