When Russian television changes tone

VS’is a rare moment of critical expression offered by Russian television. A retired colonel says all the bad things he thinks about Vladimir Putin’s “special operation”. Mikhaïl Khodaryonok, 68, let loose on May 17 on the Rossiya1 channel, where the regime’s flatterers usually line up. “Let’s stop absorbing the sedatives of information, frankly, for us, the situation is getting worse […] Ukraine can mobilize more than a million trained men ready to sacrifice themselves for their fatherland. »

On the set, the guests freeze, a feeling of unease sets in. Green-eyed host Olga Skabeyeva, 37, nicknamed “Putin’s iron doll” for her propaganda skills, cuts him off: “But it’s not an army of professionals,” she says.