Russian state media declares war on Arnie after video message against Ukraine invasion

Russian state media has reacted with fury to Arnold Schwarzenegger’s video message speaking out against the Ukraine invasion.

The Hollywood action star and former Governor of California shared the passionate, nine-minute video on Thursday in which he urged Russian citizens and military members to hear “the truth”.

Expressing his “love” for the Russian people, the 74-year-old said he wanted to dispel information and urged for Russia’s government, military and citizens to end the ongoing violence.

“The strength and the heart of the Russian people have always inspired me,” he said. “That is why I hope that you will let me tell you the truth about the war in Ukraine and what is happening there. No one likes to hear something critical of their government, I understand that. But as a longtime friend of the Russian people, I hope that you will hear what I have to say.”

The video was shared across multiple social media platforms, racking up millions of views in a matter of days.

According to The Daily Beast, Russian state media had initially tried to ignore the video, but was forced to address it after Schwarzenegger’s message went viral on Telegram, which is mainly used by Russians.

“That face is the cover page of American imperialism and colonialism,” commentator Vadim Gigin said on the state TV show Sunday Evening With Vladimir Solovievon, The Daily Beast reported.

“Not the caricature image of Uncle Sam, but this Schwarz, in a Hollywood production. He, in California, will tell us, who live here … the truth?! That is their approach towards us.”
 

Host Vladimir Soloviev then added, “Schwarzenegger twice travelled to Iraq to support the American troops and never tried to tell the Iraqi people why they’re being destroyed.”

The publication noted other prominent Russians, not just state media pundits, expressed outrage at the video.

Russian powerlifter Maryana Naumova was quoted by the Komsomolskaya Pravda tabloid accusing Schwarzenegger of “living in an alternative, imaginary reality”.

“Do you remember how in the second part of the Terminator your hero goes back in time to prevent the creation of Skynet, which would bring the death of all mankind?” she said.

“Russia’s special military operation does not aim to destroy the Ukrainian people. It is aimed at the neo-Nazi Skynet, which over the years has completely subjugated Ukraine and was about to turn into an uncontrollable monster, dangerous for all of its neighbours, not only for us … Don’t side with Skynet, Terminator.”

And Russian author Zakhar Prilepin wrote on his Telegram channel that “Schwarzenegger, who killed three million Russians in his films, told the Russian people how much he loves us and how wrong we are about Ukraine”.

“This Austrian, the son of his father, who served in the SS and was wounded near Leningrad, is trying to act as the good cop,” he said, adding that the US was “pumping Ukraine full of weapons to massacre the Russians”.

“Arnie, you are a predator and an enemy,” he wrote.
 

Speaking in the video, Schwarzenegger cited Yuri Petrovich Vlasov, a champion weightlifter from Russia, as one of his childhood idols. He described how his father Gustav Schwarzenegger, a member of the Nazi party who served in World War II, became angry when he hung a picture of Vlasov in his room.

“My father told me to take down the picture and to find a German or Austrian hero,” he said. “But I did not take down the photograph, because it didn’t matter to me what flag Yuri Vlasov carried.”

Schwarzenegger candidly spoke about his father’s dark history and its impact.

“[My father] was injured at Leningrad and the Nazi army he was part of did vicious harm to the great city and to its brave people,” he said.

“When my father arrived in Leningrad, he was all pumped up on the lies of his government. When he left Leningrad, he was broken – physically and mentally. He lived the rest of his life in pain. Pain from a broken back, pain from the shrapnel that always reminded him of those terrible years. And pain from the guilt that he felt. To the Russian soldiers listening to this broadcast, you already know much of the truth that I’m speaking. You’ve seen it in your own eyes. I don’t want you to be broken like my father.”
 

Schwarzenegger shot down claims made by the Russian government that the purpose of their invasion was to “de-Nazify Ukraine”. He explained how the war was provoked by Russia and declared illegal by 141 nations at the UN. He also detailed how many civilian buildings, including a maternity hospital, were bombed, as well as how thousands of Russian soldiers have died.

“The world has turned against Russia because of its actions in Ukraine,” he said. “The destruction that Russian bombs are raining down on innocent civilians has so outraged the world that the strongest global economic sanctions ever taken have been imposed on your country … This is not the war to defend Russia like your grandfather or your great-grandfather fought. This is an illegal war.”

The video was accompanied by videos and images of refugees packed into crowded rooms as they attempt to escape. Other families were seen giving tearful goodbyes before separating.

“To the soldiers who are listening to this, remember that 11 million Russians have family connections to Ukraine – so every bullet you shoot, you shoot a brother or a sister,” he said. “To those in power in the Kremlin, let me just ask you: Why would you sacrifice these young men for your own ambition? … To [Russian] President Putin, I say: You started this war. You are leading this war. You can stop this war.”

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Ukraine was invaded on February 24. The invasion has sparked worldwide condemnation. Hundreds have already been reported either dead or wounded, including children. Millions have fled or attempted to escape the country.

— with Fox News