“https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=msGT4vPeq54”
Трамп идёт вразнос! Джихад Ирана Запад СКОРО ощутит. Дудкин: ДРАКА ЗА КРАМАТОРСК БУДЕТ СТРАШНАЯ!
Александр ШЕЛЕСТ
Trump is going berserk! The West will SOON feel the effects of Iran’s jihad. Dudkin: THE FIGHT FOR KRAMATORSK WILL BE TERRIBLE!
Alexander SHELEST
8th Marchc 2026. Youtube interview: Shelest and Dudkin.
English Translation with Synopsis below:
Alexander: I welcome you, dear friends, respected guests, and subscribers to my channel. Thank you all very much for following the new episodes and our conversations with Yuri Dudkin. He is in touch. Yuri Antonovich, I greet you.
Yuri: Hello, Alexander. Glad to see you. And to get straight to the point, I can’t start anywhere but Iran, because of what’s happening. You know, it seems like some kind of new phase, it smells like a new phase is starting. The President of Iran came out, after having spoken with Putin yesterday, and says, “Sorry, neighbors, we won’t attack you anymore.” And it’s noticeable that this recording was made because, literally just a short time before this announcement, [the news was] that Iran will now only respond to its neighbors. That is, if strikes are launched from their territory against Iran, then it will strike back, but otherwise, it won’t, shall we say, launch missiles and Shaheds and, in fact, destroy the infrastructure of those neighboring countries that are allied with the Americans and Israelis.
And it seems, and people have calculated this in different ways, some say it’s a kind of military cunning, meaning for the Persian Gulf countries which, throughout the week of Trump’s special operation, [the US] pressured to get them to enter the war. They didn’t enter the war, and now there’s generally no point for them to enter this war. Others note that Iran is slowly deflating, and the strikes are, in general, taking their toll. How do you see this situation? And actually, after this first stormy week, we will continue to observe, shall we say, the slowly unfolding Middle Eastern conflict, or can they still add more fuel to the fire?
Yuri: Well, I would start, Alexander, not with Iran. I would start with the United States. Let’s start with them. The fact that something has gone wrong for the US, as they like to say in Hollywood films, is already clear. That is, all those bravura speeches of Trump, and now he’s just being blown away by it all… in various interviews and comments, he gathers pastors in his office, puts on this show that looks like some kind of satanic sect. And, frankly, it even looks comical. The president of a nuclear power summons… summons servants of God to his office, you understand, having imagined himself, I suppose, as a messiah, or a mentor of God on Earth, an heir of God on Earth. This is very clearly traced in Trump’s behavior.
And when, during the 12-day war, or some few months ago, Trump also said, “In three days we will destroy the entire nuclear program of Iran,” and after finishing that operation, he held, as he says, brilliant negotiations, made a deal with Iran and Israel, and said that Iran could no longer produce nuclear weapons. Well, it would seem, thank God, what a great president, solved all the issues. True, again, through thousands of casualties. And here, you see, the need arises again to roll over Iran, after, I say, a few of these “peaceful” months—in quotes, of course, “peaceful,” because the planet lived in terrible tension all this time, understanding that Trump had not destroyed any of the enterprises involved in Iran’s nuclear program. Yes, tangible strikes were carried out, but the United States is far from being informed about what infrastructure Iran has, where certain military facilities are, where some nuclear facilities are. Bushehr, by the way, the nuclear power plant that the Russian Federation is building, is untouchable. This is also an indicator. I’ll come back to this point of yours, by the way, about why the President of Iran came out now with such a statement. Bushehr is untouchable. Nothing at all flies there and won’t fly there, I assure you.
And as for the US and Israel, well, especially the US, since I’m talking about them now, again, this lightning-fast blitzkrieg that Trump announced once again against Iran, it deflated like a soap bubble. And Iran continues to resist. Moreover, how long it can resist, again, no one knows. And credit must be given to all the military and political leadership of Iran that they prepared for these strikes, for this aggression. They prepared, though not entirely, shall we say, considering all aspects related to modern warfare. I mean, first and foremost, air defense systems. In 2012, as the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, himself stated, he made an offer to Iran—the President of Iran then was Mahmoud Ahmadinejad—to create a joint air defense for Iran. Joint development, not joint with Russia, but joint development of air defense systems for Iran. And since the Iranian leadership at that time rejected this idea, no more proposals were made.
Later, China got involved in this issue, understanding that it is interested in Iranian oil, but somehow all this also needs to be protected from the sky, not just along the land perimeter. So the Iranians refused them too, the Chinese. And in conclusion, of course, the reason for today’s situation with Iran, that it is fighting off two powerful states that have always tried to destroy it, just as, by the way, Iran tried to destroy Israel, is this: between the Russian Federation, which also offered—twice when President Pezeshkian came to Moscow, twice offered him to conclude a treaty on a comprehensive strategic partnership in the military sphere. So, the Iranians signed such a treaty, it exists, but the clause concerning the military sphere, the Iranians crossed out, and this clause did not enter the main document that was signed. Therefore, nowadays, some people make reproaches towards Russia: why is such a powerful power, such friends, not helping Iran to fight? But the Russian leadership announced what I’ve just told you, that such proposals were made. But Russia and China are not the kind of states that act according to the principles that the United States of America acts on today. And their main goal today, in this region, is far from oil. Just as it’s not oil in Venezuela either. It is the dismantling of the political system in these states. If someone doesn’t understand this, they probably will never understand it. Oil is, of course, important, undoubtedly. But the political system that does not submit to the United States, in the era of multipolarity—the beginning of multipolarity—really irritates the US. Because the United States is not governed by the president, I’ve said this before. It is governed there by a certain secret order, called the deep state, the higher spheres, the bourgeoisie, and so on and so forth. These people, who number, by some estimates—I haven’t counted them—up to two dozen individuals, decide the fate of the world.
As long as they are deciding the fate of the world, the President of the United States is, in essence, their errand boy. You will notice how not only Trump, but also Biden and Obama, how inconsistent they were in what they proclaimed and how they then acted. You could, so to speak, rewind the retrospective of Clinton’s policies and Obama’s policies. It’s all the same as what’s happening with Trump today. This suggests that the main goal of the United States today, and the task set for Trump by this secret order that operates in the US and governs the US and the whole world, is the destruction of unruly regimes. So far, the Russian regime, the Chinese regime, even the DPRK, are beyond their strength. But those states that are more or less weak in their ability to defend themselves in some way will be subjected to anything, any pressure. And the second task facing Trump is the imposition of regimes favorable to the US in these states.
Trump’s words were absolutely ridiculous. When I read it, I, being alone in the room, actually thought something was wrong with my psyche because I started laughing terribly when Trump says, “I will appoint the spiritual leadership in Iran.” But that’s the same as saying, remove the Pope and say, “I will appoint a Pope for you, and you go ahead and send up the white smoke through the chimney.” It’s not like the Pope himself is an American, a Republican in the past. I’m just comparing. He wasn’t always an American. Still, in the Vatican, there is a specific electoral system and hierarchy that strictly adheres to these ancient religious traditions in Catholicism, in the highest leadership of Catholicism. But here, in fact, the Imam, meaning the Ayatollah, is the highest rank in the Shiite Muslim leadership. And he is elected, only they decide. They decide, not the US President or some deep state. But when Trump proclaimed this, it sounded so stupid, but even, excuse me, Tucker Carlson, who was part of MAGA, God damn him, he himself has already spoken out about this. It’s just some kind of theater, this isn’t how a political figure talks.
And in general, frankly, Trump’s actions today, the comments on these issues—well, what will happen next? Well, what will you do? Well, some say that Khamenei’s son has already assumed the duties of the spiritual leader. Some, by the way, Iranian commentators, and others say in Iran that the election of the spiritual leader hasn’t happened yet. Well, it doesn’t matter, he will be, and the Iranian people themselves will decide this issue, of course, not Trump and his associates in the form of some absolutely crazy senators, Republicans. But Trump cannot answer the question, here he is as the head of such a powerful power, a nuclear power, he doesn’t know who will lead Iran, he doesn’t know what will happen next with the fighting. The main thing, and many military people I respect say this correctly, is that before starting a war, you need to know how to end it. That is, it’s clear that everyone craves victory, but victory can also be different. Trump doesn’t know how to end this war. And neither Trump nor his dopey Hegseth, the Secretary of War, know today. And today this war is taking on a state of chaos.
Look, they’re sending another aircraft carrier there. The data varies. Yesterday Trump says the complete capitulation of Iran is the goal of the United States. Then a little bit, a couple of hours later, his words take on a different shade, interpreted by himself. Like, they can, of course, announce themselves, well, we’ll see when we’ve hit all their targets, and then we ourselves will say that we won and leave. That is, these tossings have clearly outlined this line.
But I’m interested in, and probably all of us are interested in, the consequences. The consequences, first of all, for Ukraine. Look, what a heartbreaking story is happening for Ukraine, for the European continent. Iran comes out and says, “Guys, if you enter the war,” meaning NATO, NATO forces are now sending [forces] into the Mediterranean, a French aircraft carrier has already entered, others, in general, the redeployment of European NATO forces—they are mainly, of course, protecting the British base in Cyprus, which is being hit with enviable regularity. “If you enter the war, if you form a coalition and bomb us, as the Americans used to do, they gathered everyone in the world, even Ukraine distinguished itself in Iraq, it was also a kind of peacekeeping mission. And they all together crushed some regime, as you emphasize above. So now, if you join, we will strike you.” And they immediately draw with a compass the radius of the missiles, which zones, in general, from the northwestern point of Iran to all countries, and about half of Europe falls exactly within the strike radius.
And here begin, shall we say, very interesting divergences and hesitations that need to be commented on and clearly deduced to the consequences for Europe, and consequently Ukraine, from the first week of Trump’s special operation.
Alexander: Well, if you think that Iran will somehow be engaged with Ukraine, including, then I don’t connect that at all.
Yuri: Wait, but Ukraine is engaged with Iran. Zelensky sent air defense personnel, he’s proud of it, the best specialists for Shaheds.
Alexander: Tell me, in what quantity?
Yuri: Well, who can tell you? It’s a military secret. I think there are at most about a dozen people with folders in their hands, who absolutely will not affect the state of air defense of either the Arab states or Israel, including. I assure you, these are more of Zelensky’s clownish tricks to show his significance. Ukraine is not participating there with any special air defense means. It itself is destitute in this regard today, and Zelensky, this unshaven dictator, also puts on some political shows, like tit for tat: “You give me Patriots, and I’ll give you some idiot drones,” which nobody needs at all, because Israel and the West have their own. If necessary, they will supply them there. Ukraine, if you please, such a richest power, can produce countless drones. And even those are produced in Ukraine from components from Western states. It produces nothing today.
And as for, say, the consequences in the future, I’m even afraid to say some things out loud here. Because in the Muslim world, especially when a spiritual leader, the head of state, is killed, in the Muslim world there is such a concept as jihad. And it doesn’t matter who you are, Shiite, Sunni, it absolutely doesn’t matter, or an extremely radical Islamist, which is also very present in this world. Take the same Hezbollah, which, despite everything, has reduced its numbers in Lebanon by three times, but still manages to launch missile strikes on Israel today, in the presence of the IDF on Lebanese territory. What a paradox.
So, these guys in the future, even when all this mess, this carousel of shelling and contactless war is over, will unleash such a jihad that September 11th will seem like mere child’s play. This is quite possible. I don’t want to jinx it, as they say. But knowing what these friends, these guys, are capable of. There. And in this case, tens of thousands of people could die, hundreds of people. And maybe even much more, depending on where certain actions are carried out. And they will be, believe me, we will still be discussing them.
Alexander: If we specify these consequences, but still, they are felt in fuel prices. Fuel is oil, petroleum products, diesel, gasoline. It’s the blood of war.
Yuri: Absolutely right. Especially since it’s what kind? Mobile, right? Well, this war here. Maneuver warfare. There are no such fronts anymore, very few instances of fortification against fortification. They are actually dismantling them and, in general, moving on in small groups.
Alexander: Prices are rising, everything is getting more expensive, actually. But in America, since you’ve focused so much on America, some strange voices are being heard. Let’s listen to a fragment of Congressman Ronnie Jackson’s speech.
(Audio clip plays – English)
“For heaven’s sakes, Laura, we’ve spent billions and billions of dollars on Ukraine, hundreds of billions of dollars. Every time I came to Congress, we passed another $40 billion for Ukraine aid. You know, there were people in our party, a few people in my party, but mostly Democrats, who walked around with Ukraine flags on their lapels. And were so proud of how much money we’re spending on Ukraine, not for a second asking the question, where is it going, what is it being spent on, and how does that contribute to the national security and the defense of the United States’ interests? I’m not saying I don’t want to defeat Putin. I do, I want Ukraine to win this war. But look at what’s so obviously happening in Iran right now and how that contributes to our national security.”
(End of clip)
Alexander: That is, with the theme of Iran, it’s being demonstrated that we spent too much money on Ukraine and got pretty heavily spent. And then an even more obvious question arises: so, further expenses and amounts need to be increased to support Ukraine, because everything is getting more expensive due to the rise in energy prices. And what about some new infusions, especially since America, which has completely severely restricted funding for weapons, is only ready to sell, and even then we will face a much more serious deficit. So how can we continue to fight like this? It turns out that the war in Ukraine is, thanks to the Middle East, already fading, almost fading away? Or will the efforts of the US and the collective West still be enough for two wars?
Yuri: You see, Americans contradict themselves. They lament, yes, and not only the same Republicans, Democrats, it doesn’t matter. They lament, “How much we spent!” And did you notice that in this excerpt from that interview, Ronnie Jackson says, “I support Ukraine”? That means what? That there, where he sits in the Senate, he will vote for these allocations for Ukraine, anything at all. The supply of intelligence data, weapons sales, and so on. Again, these televised appearances by American senators, regardless of which party they belong to, are always aimed at some part of their audience. Nothing more. That is, this absolutely will not change the state of affairs that, as I already said above, it is beneficial for the United States to have a blazing fire next to Russia. And they will keep this fire burning in the form of Ukraine.
And especially with what is happening today in the minds of Ukrainians, ordinary citizens, they have done a very big thing. They turned everything upside down, or rather. Those citizens of Ukraine who, just some 20 years ago, knew perfectly well their heritage, historical heritage, how the Ukrainian people fought against fascism and actually expelled it from Europe—the US and UK joined this process insignificantly later. Then they also recorded France as a victor. All this is forgotten today by ordinary citizens of Ukraine. This is a Ukrainian tragedy. And the US simply earned extra points from this because their ideological war, in the complete absence of counter-propaganda from the same Russian Federation, was successful. They absolutely reforged Ukrainian citizens in their own image.
Now ask any Ukrainian—I’m not taking the eastern regions, Donbas there, and the Southeast—other citizens of Ukraine who are there today: “What is the most powerful power in the world, and who is closer to you?” They will say America. I’m sure nine out of ten people will say that. And even, I repeat, in Kyiv itself. In Kyiv, the Hero City. What are we even talking about?
Therefore, this so-called aid, somewhere they are still keeping this ledger. Remember Monofort’s [likely refers to a notebook or ledger mentioned in previous contexts] notebook? The Americans are keeping this ledger, I assure you. They don’t just hand out money. How much they gave, what they gave, what time, who received it. And those armored vehicles that drive from Austria through Hungary to Ukraine, they will also be written down there with those thousands in cash and nine kilograms of gold. Everything will be, everything is recorded. Only, really, who will they present this to? They all hope that the Ukrainian regime in the form it is in will survive. Even many of those who are now in Moscow from former Ukrainian power structures all hope that they will return to Kyiv when Russia finally breaks Zelensky’s back. And they will rule there. You see? So the US has a different opinion. They say that if not Zelensky, then another person whom they will place there, just as they want to place [someone] in Iran, [as] they placed in Venezuela, having bought off the entire Venezuelan leadership, bought them off. And this person will carry out all their whims. It is not necessary to admit him to NATO or the EU. Therefore, the goals of the United States do not change and will not change.
All this fish scale that exists today in the form of American propaganda, the most powerful propaganda, where billions of dollars are poured in so that the whole world knows what Washington and that deep state want, is being successfully carried out today. Successfully carried out. And, let’s say, I don’t see any obstacles in this area from those who, well, let’s say, have long said that the US is not our friend. Well, Russia, I mean, and China. But, as the old saying goes, “Nothing personal, just business.” In this regard, Russia does not want to lose any, even the slightest, established diplomatic ties with the US, including China, by the way, the Chinese leadership. Although at some international platforms, including the UN Security Council, these edges, these thorns, manifest themselves very clearly. When, for example, the Permanent Representative to the Security Council, Nebenzia, speaks, you see how the British and Americans react to his speech. It’s just such frantic animosity, hatred. But in general, yes, both Trump and Putin, and US Secretary of State Rubio, and Russia’s Foreign Minister Lavrov, generally maintain overall tact in their behavior. These are all very fine lines. Therefore, relying on the speech of some senator that they are lamenting about something, their losses—they will turn on 10, 20, 100 printing presses and flood the whole world with these papers to achieve their goals.
Alexander: Yuri Anatolievich, if we move to Ukraine, after a fairly long pause, a missile and drone strike was carried out on Ukraine. So, at night, a strike was carried out on Kramatorsk, the very center of the city was destroyed, they reported that. Well, and, of course, besides strikes on logistics, meaning the railway, the hydroelectric station was also under attack. Kyiv, even a report came through, but it’s not being highlighted. Probably, they are still calculating options there with permission [unclear]. Again, 2,700 houses without heat in Kyiv, Klitschko reported. Such, let’s say, reports about the consequences of the night attack came through today. Well, it’s clear that a lot was shot down. A lot was shot down, as always, in principle. You don’t have to look closely at the statistics, everyone understands perfectly well. We’re like the best air defense operators. We can share with Dubai. But nevertheless, in Kharkiv, there is a real and terrible tragedy. So, these are the consequences of a hit on a building. As Mayor Terekhov stated, it was a direct hit by this rocket on a residential building. A building opposite a school. Killed a teacher. Children died there. In total, they reported six. Well, they are clearing the rubble. There will be more victims. This is how they demonstrate these, actually, packages. Terekhov himself comments on this situation. Immediately, various channels started saying that this is some kind of “Izdelie 30” [Product 30]. Well, some new Russian missile. A new development. Medium range, up to one and a half thousand kilometers. And we understand that the strike is quite heavy and emotional. And in terms of damage, too. And again, they don’t tell us everything, because the air defense, of course, shot everything down. Well, in Kharkiv, people died and are under the rubble of the house, and in the neighboring school opposite. Many said that the pause was due to helping Iran with intelligence data. And this has been discussed for the third day in American circles. Like, is Russia helping or not? And is it helping, well, how? And as if they switched there, to that theater. And so, plus or minus, it was okay. Some drones flew into the Duboviy Rym [place name], they were shot down, but there was no such strike. Now these strikes have resumed. What prospects do you see in these circumstances for the air war and the front-line war on the Ukrainian fronts?
Yuri: War is war. People die. There are no such wars in the world. In any case, in its history of development, humanity has experienced, according to some data, 16,000 wars, small and large. There hasn’t been a single war where people didn’t die. This is natural, it’s understandable. Another matter is the methods by which these wars are waged. For some reason, the scandal over the American shelling, as the New York Times writes, of an Iranian girls’ school, where more than one and a half hundred children and 14 teachers died, is already dying down. Now they are switching attention to Ukraine. People died in Ukraine, today there are already millions dead. So war is war.
As for the specific cases of Kramatorsk and Sloviansk, now, according to my data, according to my information, in Russia they are dealing with this issue very intensively, because these are very powerful fortified areas. Moreover, these two cities are the final point in the matter of liberating Donbas. Further, as many in Moscow say, as soon as the Ukrainian Armed Forces in these cities are finished, then, of course, the Russians will further develop their offensive absolutely unhindered, actually. And as for the civilian population of these cities, of course, I have always urged, although in principle I am a private individual, not a statesman, that these cities needed to be abandoned because the fight will be terrible. I say this as I understand it. I don’t want to veil it in any way, you know? The fight for these two cities will be terrible. And the most modern types of weapons will be used there, since Kramatorsk is a large industrial center and there are a lot of underground communications. I think the Russians will destroy them because the Ukrainian side brought everything possible there to put up a long resistance in this city. And Sloviansk, in principle, is no less [important], although Sloviansk is, of course, smaller—Sloviansk, call it what you want. This is in general, I’ll tell you, I recently watched a video, by the way. I was in Sloviansk, I know who lives there, what kind of people they are. They are Russian people. It never smelled of Ukrainianism there, and it doesn’t smell to this day, especially before the start of 2022. I know these people well. When I was there, you could constantly hear only Russian speech. The Ukrainian language probably only sounded in the city administration.
And I recently watched a recording. In Sumy region, they liberated a small populated area. The recording is absolutely amateur. Some federal channels broadcast it. An absolutely amateur recording where an elderly man, about 75 years old, probably, tells how the AFU [Armed Forces of Ukraine] mocked the local population. I don’t want to give details now, it’s basically pointless. Many might say that I’m making all this up and so on. Sumy region, you understand? That’s Sumy—with Sumy. It’s a Ukrainian city. They were Ukrainian villages. It’s understandable there, and this elderly man speaks exclusively in Ukrainian. But he says, “I was waiting for Russian soldiers.” He was waiting for them, because the populated area has already been occupied by Russian troops, a assault group. “I was waiting for you,” he says, “because what you were doing here,” he says, “the AFU soldiers, it’s just, I don’t know, I didn’t hear my father [say] that in occupied cities of Ukraine you did such things. There was simply terrible robbery going on. You carried everything you wanted out of the houses.”
That’s the main problem. And the fact that rockets hit residential buildings is terrible. It’s terrible. Well, you understand, here… The Americans call this, you see, again, it’s a struggle and dialogue—”collateral damage.” It’s just a very specific episode here too.
Again, yes, look, what caught my eye, like a one-line news item, is exactly what you’re talking about—it’s not on federal channels. But we see these recordings there, remember when there were some local territorial defense soldiers, and locals don’t want to leave there for deeper Ukraine because they’ll be grabbed, shaved, mobilized. And here you can, like, buy your way out, do nothing, actually, with these soldiers, some TDF [Territorial Defense Forces] guys who are supposedly guarding something there. Well, we saw this in the Sumy region, and the Deep State confirmed it, it was all quickly hushed up, because, well, damn it, yes, that is, they give weapons there locally, they shoot at drones there, make obscene gestures. I’m talking about this episode in the Sumy region. And so, if you look into it, disorder, sheer devastation, yes, they sit there, yes, well, and that’s kind of it, that’s the kind of front-line border zone it is.
But you say it’s not on federal channels, but on federal channels today, a report caught my eye that, well, let’s say, propaganda, RIA Novosti, “enemy narratives.” Well, okay, let’s look at it from the point of view of an enemy narrative. So, “Residents of Huliaipole paid for the delivery of humanitarian aid,” news, yes, today’s news. Well, they say, here you go, there is a girl, some Yana Bezhenka, yes, Yana Terekhova, she spoke on camera about how there is some street captain, everyone chipped in for her, and in order for humanitarian aid to be there, in general, yes, so to speak, it was all done. A note that on December 27th they liberated, well, liberated, occupied, yes, let’s put it neutrally, the city of Huliaipole—this is, of course, disputed information, it wasn’t confirmed later, and, in general, fighting around Huliaipole continues now, but I’m interested in precisely the state of the local population there. Well, it seems like one of the lines, well, news, news. Well, there’s a video, let’s look at this Yana Terekhova. So, what does she say?
(Video clip plays – Ukrainian/Russian)
“There was humanitarian aid, we had a main woman on the street, she brought humanitarian aid from the neighboring village, but to get this aid, you had to pay her for delivery.”
(End of clip)
Alexander: Look, a young woman, a girl, actually, yes, well, that is, her eyes reflect everything that a peaceful person sees being in the epicenter of hostilities, yes, she, understandably, went through all this and left for Russia, and in Russia they film and show it, and she tells what happened to her. To say that she is lying, working for propaganda there, is quite difficult, because you just look at her, and there are many such people, and these people, Ukraine doesn’t really show them somehow. No, if they have to come out and say, “Damned Russians are showing [propaganda].” But when, excuse me, remember, recently they also spread a video, a family came out with a bicycle and dogs, and they say, “So you’ve left,” a journalist there all in a helmet, body armor, also an already elderly man and a grandmother hobbling there, over 80 years old. And he emotionally says, “But where will I go? Where?” Well, that is, “I have my pension, will it be enough for me?” That is, “We’re taking these dogs, but they don’t take you anywhere to live with dogs. Well, we can’t, I have a shepherd.” That is, this video was striking because everything in it was poverty against the backdrop of armored cash-collection vehicles, doom, grief interrupting… We forget about this. They tell us some kind of nonsense, you understand, about what powerful air defense operators [they are], what kind of, like, what a tragedy, a house in the rear was hit, somewhere in a house, a rocket. And the tragedy of these people becomes unnecessary against the backdrop of all these events. Why is this happening in the fifth year of the war? Why… Okay, there is Ukraine the state, Ukraine there is the “anti-Russia” project. That’s all clear. Ideology, propaganda. One side of propaganda, the other. Why has society started to treat people from the front line, who are struggling and who have experienced this, like this?
Yuri: Well, why, it’s probably already clear why. Because in four years you can learn anything, any situation. Children of Donbas in eight years of war know the caliber of the weapon they are shooting from by the sound of the explosion. And they know which drone is flying over their city, over their village. These are children. Adults especially understand perfectly well what is happening in general. And the fact that Ukrainian statehood as such began to crumble not in ’22, with the Russian invasion. This is self-evident. Sane people who are capable of analysis, of assessing events, let’s say an unbiased assessment. What was happening in the 90s in Ukraine under various authorities. The main thing in this process, here’s what I like in Ukraine: the observance of the principles of democracy. That which the Americans simply imposed on the Ukrainian people with furious force. “More democracy, more transparency.” These words were heard in the beginning and throughout the 90s with such incredible force. There. And I never heard, and I lived in Ukraine for all 30 years of its existence, that the Ukrainian nation is a multi-ethnic nation, moreover, multi-confessional. That it is necessary, at all costs, to unite this nation, to give the right to any language, any national group living on the territory of Ukraine and receiving, by the way, citizenship and holding Ukrainian passports, to freely communicate in their native language. But language was elevated, again at the suggestion of American friends, to the rank of a disuniting force in Ukrainian society. That’s the most important thing, that’s the reason for the Maidan of 2014, that’s the reason for the civil war in Donbas and, in general, the collapse of the country, when Ukrainian society itself, the Ukrainian authorities themselves, whatever they were, did not understand the meaning of language at all, what they were doing. You cannot force Crimean Tatars or ethnic Russians to speak Ukrainian, breaking them over your knee. This never happened and never will. It’s the same as forcing Iranians to speak English. Whoever wants to will speak, and whoever doesn’t want to won’t. They will resist, take up arms, defend their rights.
I remember how in court, the judge, Sasha, a judge, forced me to speak Ukrainian. By doing so, the judge comes into conflict with the Constitution of Ukraine, with the articles of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine, which clearly states that if a suspect, witness, or defendant, it doesn’t matter, demands that the documents in the case be presented to him in the language, the native language in which he wishes to speak, they must be presented to him. And in Article 10 of the Constitution, it says that all languages are under the protection of the state, and especially the Russian language, it’s even highlighted there. But has the Constitution ever been a priority for the Ukrainian authorities? In the Verkhovna Rada today, there are, if my memory serves me—again, I consulted with a currently serving people’s deputy, long-time, who is already in the Rada, I won’t give the name—more than three hundred laws, important laws, not just some where they changed only a comma or a dash, important laws that fundamentally contradict the Constitution of Ukraine. But this is nonsense. The Constitution is the fundamental law, including for the Verkhovna Rada.
Alexander: Listen, well, look, language is understandable, but when you sell humanitarian aid, when you’re against the backdrop, this is also incomprehensible, yes. In Hungary, they say, we are generally in shock, they bring cash, some kind of military-mafia groups, they don’t give a damn about the common man on the front line, he’s there, well, like decoration, that is, decoration, you can sell him humanitarian aid, that is, everything is sold, everything is bought, this little soldier who eats some kind of soup or MRE, someone also makes their profit on that MRE, someone also made a little money, that is, this system is turning not into this state one that you are discussing, well, like constitution, institutions, system there, checks and balances, compensatory mechanisms of power, no, it turns out in some, well, completely different form now it looks, I don’t know, in cartels there are more concepts and order, in Mexican ones, look, they buried this one, who was liquidated, in a golden coffin, you understand, in a golden coffin they buried him, because of whom all the fuss was, you understand, and there, you understand, they have their own hierarchy there, and some concepts, also some clans, groups there, some are simpler, some are a bit more screwed, I ask you, since when have people been spat upon?
Yuri: And I explained to you, well, you, by the way, are wrong to say language, you again, see, Sasha, you separate all the current problems that exist—I call them problems so softly, actually it’s a catastrophe—from what the Constitution of Ukraine prescribes. You’ve taken and separated them, and that’s wrong. In the same cartels, which you, by the way, mentioned, yes, try there, they live by their own code, try to violate something there, first they’ll cut off your hand, yes, or gouge out your eye, well, to make it clearer, and an example for others, and then they’ll do something else, well, I won’t specify, there too there are their own, so to speak, laws. These are the principles of existence of civilization. Human society cannot live without laws. And you cannot separate some particular case with some, with some volunteers, yes, there, or else with some grandfather, if the state as a whole is in ruins, chaos, moreover, separate groups of people appropriate national wealth for themselves, absolutely shamelessly, speculate on the national treasure, sell anything, engage in violence against Ukrainian citizens in general. This is violence, the most real. What is happening in Ukraine today, many say, well, why are Ukrainians, yes, dissatisfied? Has it finally dawned on them, after, say, five years of war, that something is wrong in Ukraine? War is war, yes, we were attacked, as they scream, it’s unclear, though, when, either in ’14 they attacked, in ’15, in ’17, or in ’22, they don’t understand this, who attacked whom, but they were attacked, they know for sure, meaning they don’t understand at what time, but they know for sure that they were attacked in ’22. But they can’t do anything inside the country because there are no elections. So, guys, I say, elections are the same measures, the same attribute that makes the government legitimate. But the group that has seized this power today doesn’t need elections, and you can’t do anything. The only bright indicator of this is the Great October 1917, when the socio-political formation changes, and this is called a revolution. Well, call it a coup d’état, but there is a change not only, meaning, of the political system but also of the minds of millions of citizens. But something changes for the better. By changing in 2014 some scoundrels, thieves, Nazis, for other scoundrels, thieves, and Nazis, you achieved nothing. Yes, they say Yanukovych was a legitimate president there, you understand, meaning, don’t count your chickens before they’re hatched, I always say. Yanukovych was chosen by the Ukrainian people absolutely legally, legitimately, that’s clear. But for a president, there also exist some examples of how devoted he is to the Ukrainian people and his cause, and he must show at the right moment, moreover, as a rule, in a difficult moment, his devotion to the Ukrainian people. The fact that they tried to kill him there and all that, that’s understandable. But when you run for president, you must be like, for example, Jawaharlal Nehru or Salvador Allende, yes. There are examples, there are examples of service to the people, of those heads of state who fought to the end to, meaning, remain with honor in the people’s memory, even dying. And today, yes, those same, let’s say, I put them in one row, whoever curses me now, I put Yanukovych, Poroshenko, Zelensky in one row—they are birds of a feather. Concern for their own pocket was their main task. And what their political views were is already a secondary question, it’s already a secondary question. That’s the whole problem of the crisis of power in Ukraine.
Alexander: Power in Ukraine is indeed now in groups that are semi-criminal, intertwined with the police, let’s say, with the thugs from the TCC [military enlistment offices]. It’s visible. It’s interesting, you’re skeptical about Americans, but nevertheless…
Yuri: And you’re not? Found one…
Alexander: Do you pin your hopes on them?
Yuri: No…
Alexander: But I still think that, how can this be, like, the ice might still break. On X or Threads, in Threads, on social networks, they post, tag Fedorov, American politicians, and say, “Is this your reform yet or not?” and videos with “busification” [forced mobilization]. Different people come there, they reply in the comments. Here’s a suggestion for you and our “potuzhny” [powerful] to open a collection for glasses for Fedorov, because you’ve completely gone blind, confusing artificial intelligence and reality, but in general, you’ve also become insolent, yes, and you’re getting dumber by the root. People are already all saying this and, in general, showing their lives as they are. Dnipro, for example, a woman complains that her husband with epilepsy, specifically with epilepsy, was “busified.” She writes, “Today my husband was stolen, my life, I am left alone with a child. He has epilepsy. People don’t care about this. I ask for help.” In general, sorry for everything, but in general, they post drawings of their child online. But this is a catastrophe for an individual, for example, a family, an individual person, an individual cell of society. And people are already throwing up their hands and everyone sees it. Here’s Rivne region, this is Dnipro, yes, they twisted [him]. Rivne region, a man films an amazing episode from life, well, the telethon won’t show such a report. It’s just life, just a highway.
(Video clip plays – Ukrainian)
“Good day to everyone who cares about Ukraine. Today is March 6th, approximately 4 PM, on Dubenska Street, unknown people kidnapped a man from this car. In balaclavas, there was like a police car behind, they stopped him, pulled him out of the car, shoved him, put him in another car and drove off. The car is standing, the car is open, the car is open. The keys are not in the lock, the keys are in the ignition. Very interesting. No justice, no documents were left in the car. Relatives, please, if someone is there, come and pick up the car.”
(End of clip)
Alexander: Well, there you go, please. He films the car, keys in the ignition, please. No protocol, nothing. It’s just standing on the road, with the ignition keys. Maybe someone driving by will think, sit down, start the engine, and pull it to the side so it doesn’t get in the way. “Prynyali” [accepted/taken note of?]. That’s how the authorities behave towards the Ukrainian people. It’s generally nonsense. Another episode, with your permission. Zaporizhzhia, it’s also interesting there, you understand, Zaporizhzhia. So, a man is standing, talking to a policeman. He says, “Documents,” and he showed him something there, he says, “No, that’s not what you showed.” He says, “Well, write me a summons, or what? Well, what are you doing?” So they stand, communicating like this for about half an hour. And then they show us this man, who was grabbed by the collar and dragged, and he’s about, well, sorry, well, like, a very adult man, and he went out without documents, he says, “Well, you write a summons,” that’s the main thing there, well, something else there, and that’s it. And he says, “Choose, either we go voluntarily now, or we detain you.” They show the time, there is such a police, police, a TCC guy walking nearby. Further, a woman, of course, intercedes, shouts, well, no use, no use. Well, and they put on handcuffs, well, that’s it, he called his wife, he was, like, grabbed by the neck, handcuffed, put in a car, and actually they’re taking him away. The woman, well, in general, this is justice. Moreover, they grabbed him by the neck, laid him down, with a chokehold, got his hands out, put them on, and they’re so polite, “Hands forward, hands in front of you,” all such, police, you understand. This is a catastrophe of the state, when these episodes, yes, and the West doesn’t see this, we see it, Ukrainians, and this is not artificial intelligence. What to do with this, and what does it tell us in the context of the ongoing war?
Yuri: I, Sasha, have already returned to this question with you, we discussed it, but it’s clear that these daily examples you demonstrate indicate what we’ve already talked about today, and talked about before. It means that any state where laws are present, not just present but working, guarantees the inviolability of the person to any citizen of that state. But this is a postulate that works throughout the civilized world. Well, maybe, I don’t know, in some African tribes this doesn’t exist, so we are similar today, we, I’m talking about us Ukrainians, we are like that tribe that grabs anyone in the jungle, hangs them upside down there, and drags them somewhere. I’ll give a small example: the United States of America, well, the one Ukraine has looked up to and looked up to for all 30 years, saying “We are not Russia.” In the United States of America, there has long been, for 250 years, we’ll soon celebrate, the right to bear arms and buy weapons. That is, you can buy as many weapons as you want, however, in each individual state there are its own laws, regulations that you must comply with when buying, carrying, what kind of weapon, and so on, there are whole laws, I won’t recite them now. What for? Well, since the Wild West, it’s clear that every person then and now has the right to defend his honor, his inviolability.
I can’t understand whether it was some kind of scam, as they say in modern language, or whether it was a fake, when it was announced that after 2014, and especially after 2022, February 24th, Ukrainians have a million illegal firearms in their hands. I’m not calling for anything, I’m just doing an analysis and asking myself first of all: where is this weapon, in which haystack, in which attic is it lying, and how long will it lie there, if Ukrainians—well, by the way, the example with the car abandoned on the highway with the keys, this is, I don’t know, probably already the thousandth example. It’s good if these TCC guys, out of the kindness of their souls, allowed him to call his wife or brother or in-law, and these relatives came and took the car. But there are a mass of cases, a mass, a wild mass, I know this, that these cars, standing for a day or two on the road, on the street, were simply looted, and that’s it, they fell into disrepair. This is the property of citizens, which, by the way, is also protected by law. In Ukraine, there is the right to protect personal property. Therefore, of course, as long as we are on air, we will be discussing this topic, because today, with some kind of soft power, with some other methods, with the help of some Fedorov there, yes, this boy, an IT specialist, to defeat this community of TCCs, which was created by the Nazi regime, it’s impossible. Any force must be met with an even greater corresponding force. And the fact that today some citizens, to whose honor and dignity I appeal first of all, can stand up for themselves, and such examples also exist, shows that not everyone in Ukraine agrees with the regime and can only run, they can still resist with weapons in hand.
Alexander: Yes, resistance, you know, it’s such a thing, but still, it’s spring, Yuri Anatolievich, spring. Tomorrow is Women’s Day. Tomorrow is a holiday, how is it, Women’s holiday is near, near. Yes, yes, yes, it’s unavoidable. You understand the point. It would seem that at least something bright remained, and yet they’ve reshaped everything, all the calendars, everything in the world. Well, March 8th, because of women, because, well, how could you take the Ukrainian woman and deprive her of March 8th? What are you doing? Although the Verkhovna Rada even came up with [something], submitted documents, they will consider the “Day of the Ukrainian Woman,” to somehow displace that old, old Soviet holiday. But I, honestly, was disconcerted by the poll that the “Rating” group dumped today. So, in dynamics, you see it all in dynamics. The majority of Ukrainians, 52% for a second, will not celebrate March 8th. That’s the kind of message. And in 2021 it was 29%, in 2020 it was 19%, in 2017 it was 16%, in 2012 14% did not celebrate, and now it’s 52%. That’s the kind of poll.
Yuri: It’s very interesting among the respondents, what number were men and women. They don’t mention that for some reason. I’m sure these results are a purely male survey, but not female, I assure you.
Alexander: Well, look, there’s a grain of truth in every joke, but the trend is obvious, the one they’re trying to show us. And what would you say on the eve of March 8th to our audience, both male and female? And how would you comment on this last bastion of conditionally normal life?
Yuri: This is a holiday of spring, love, Women’s Day. Because, let’s put it this way. Now, I’m also communicating with many people, and they say, “Listen, we’ve been fighting, we’ve been fighting, all this propaganda, we let all this pass through us, all these events. Now there’s a war in Iran, then something else. Then all this falls on your head. And then we threw the baby out with the bathwater. There is no longer that Ukraine that we once loved, valued, cherished, treasured. And March 8th and the attitude towards March 8th shows exactly that.” A woman in the Slavic world has always been, well, in Ukraine they say “berehynia” [protectress/guardian angel], protector, keeper of the hearth. And this is a very good, honorable, respected title. And indeed, I’ve been in Europe for the fifth year now. When in Ukraine they talked about International Women’s Day, some writers, you know, advanced in the Ukrainian idea, started saying, “Tse kiviyn” [This is a leftover?], what is it, who celebrates it there, Soviet holiday, you understand. Guys, in Europe, International Women’s Day is celebrated. They celebrate it. Well, of course not at the state level, they don’t gather a big meeting at the Kremlin Palace, they don’t put on big concerts, that’s absolutely unimportant. But here in Europe it’s celebrated, especially by middle-aged people, and young people too. Why not have another glass of beer and give a woman a bouquet of flowers? And this is wonderfully understood by all humanity. But indeed, once the holiday was bright, vibrant, established more than a hundred years ago by Clara Zetkin and Rosa Luxemburg, prominent German revolutionaries. I won’t talk about the history of the holiday; it’s already been distorted, rewritten dozens of times. The holiday is bright, and I, firstly, congratulate in advance all women, regardless of political color, regardless of age, on this bright holiday. I want to wish our dear women that they still remain wise, tolerant, beautiful, that they always remember that there is that second half of humanity, the male half, which should take care of them and give flowers not only on this day, but throughout the whole year. Happy holiday, dear women.
Alexander: Yuri Dudkin was my interlocutor today. Thank you for your time and thoughts. Friends, thank you for watching this video. I join in the congratulations. Take care of yourselves and each other. Peace and light to everyone. See you.
Synopsis: The Texture of a Geopolitical Conversation
This dialogue is far more than a simple news recap. It is a sprawling, opinionated, and deeply illustrative conversation that uses the trigger of the Iran crisis to delve into a comprehensive critique of US power, the failures of the Ukrainian state, and the human tragedy of war as seen from a specific, pro-Russian perspective. The “telling illustrations” are its core strength.
1. The “Satanic Sect” and the Delusional Messiah: A Portrait of Trump
Yuri’s analysis of the US is not just policy criticism; it’s a vivid character assassination of Trump and the system he represents.
- Theatrical Absurdity: He describes Trump holding meetings with pastors in the Oval Office as a “show that looks like some kind of satanic sect.” The image is meant to convey a disconnect from reality and a quasi-religious cult of personality.
- The Messiah Complex: Yuri fixates on Trump’s claim that he would “appoint the spiritual leadership in Iran.” He finds this hilariously delusional, comparing it to a US president trying to appoint the Pope. He highlights Tucker Carlson’s reported bewilderment at the statement to underscore how absurd it sounds, even to Trump’s allies. This anecdote serves to illustrate the perceived arrogance and ignorance of the US leadership regarding other cultures and the “deep state’s” control over a seemingly erratic president.
2. The Untouchable Power Plant and Missed Alliances: Iran’s Strategic Mistakes
Yuri attempts to explain Iran’s current predicament by pointing to its past hubris, using concrete examples.
- The Bushehr Anomaly: He notes that the Russian-built Bushehr nuclear power plant is “untouchable” in the current conflict, implying an unspoken understanding between the great powers. This detail is used to suggest a complex layer of back-channel communications and red lines that exist beneath the surface of the war.
- Rejected Offers: He provides a historical timeline of Iran rejecting help. He claims Putin offered joint development of an air defense system in 2012, which Ahmadinejad refused. Later, he says, China made overtures to protect its oil interests, and they were also rebuffed. Most damningly, he states that when President Pezeshkian came to Moscow, Iran signed a strategic partnership treaty but specifically crossed out the military cooperation clause. This anecdote is crucial for his argument: Russia is not to blame for not helping Iran now because Iran itself refused all previous offers of alliance.
3. The “Ledger” and the Unshaven Dictator: Ukraine’s Hollowed-Out State
The conversation’s most powerful and detailed section concerns the perceived internal collapse of Ukraine. The critique moves from geopolitics to vivid, ground-level horror.
- Humanitarian Aid for Sale: The story of Yana Terekhova from Huliaipole is not just a news item; it’s a visceral illustration of societal breakdown. A young woman describes how she had to pay the “street captain” to receive humanitarian aid. This anecdote is used to argue that the system has become predatory, preying on its own desperate citizens.
- “Busification” as State Terror: The video clips described are the centerpiece of this argument.
- The Abandoned Car: The man filming on the Dubenska Street highway shows a car with the keys still in the ignition, its owner just having been kidnapped by masked men with police escort. The car is left as a monument to the sudden, lawless disappearance of a citizen.
- The Chokehold in Zaporizhzhia: The detailed description of an older man being grabbed, put in a chokehold by police, handcuffed, and thrown into a van for a supposed draft violation—all while his wife protests helplessly—is meant to shock. Yuri explicitly frames this as a “catastrophe of the state,” where the protection of the individual has completely vanished. He contrasts this with the US’s Second Amendment, sarcastically wondering where all the millions of illegal Ukrainian guns are, as they are not being used to resist this internal tyranny.
- Zelensky’s “Clownish Tricks”: He dismisses the reported deployment of Ukrainian air defense experts to Israel as a farce. He imagines them as “at most about a dozen people with folders in their hands,” sent by the “unshaven dictator” purely for a political PR stunt to appear relevant on the world stage.
4. The Tragedy of the Common Person: The Forgotten Ukrainians
Amidst the geopolitical arguments, the conversation repeatedly returns to the suffering of ordinary people, which they feel is ignored by propaganda on all sides.
- The Elderly Man in the Sumy Region: Yuri describes an amateur video of a 75-year-old man, speaking Ukrainian, who tearfully says he was waiting for Russian soldiers because the Ukrainian forces (“AFU guys”) had robbed the local population blind. This story is used to counter the official Ukrainian narrative of unity and patriotism.
- The Family with Dogs and a Bicycle: Alexander recalls a video of an elderly couple trying to evacuate with their shepherd dog, only to find nowhere will accept them with their pet. He contrasts this image of poverty and desperation—an old woman hobbling along, their few possessions on a bicycle—with the media’s focus on abstract statistics and the prowess of air defense systems. He asks the central human question: “Why has society started to treat people from the front line, who are struggling and who have experienced this, like this?”
5. The Last Bastion: March 8th as a Cultural Barometer
The conversation ends not with a military forecast, but with a poignant cultural detail: a poll showing that 52% of Ukrainians do not plan to celebrate International Women’s Day, a dramatic rise from previous years.
- Throwing the Baby Out with the Bathwater: Alexander and Yuri see this not as a trivial statistic, but as evidence that the “old Ukraine” they claim to have loved—the Slavic world with its traditions, its respect for women as the “berehynia” (protectress/guardian angel)—is being deliberately destroyed. Yuri points out that Europe does celebrate it, even if informally. The abandonment of the holiday becomes a powerful, emotional symbol of how the conflict has poisoned and eradicated normal, warm, human connections and cultural touchstones in Ukraine. Yuri’s final, heartfelt greeting to all women stands in stark contrast to the grim picture painted throughout the dialogue, serving as a plea for a shared humanity that transcends the political and military divisions.
6. “The Fight Will Be Terrible”: Kramatorsk as the Coming Storm
The title of the piece, “The fight for Kramatorsk will be terrible,” is not just a headline—it is the emotional and strategic anchor for the discussion about Ukraine’s immediate future.
Kramatorsk and Sloviansk as the Final Line
When Alexander brings up the renewed Russian strikes, Yuri seizes on the mention of Kramatorsk to paint a grim picture of what is coming. He explains that these two cities are not just any front-line towns; they represent “the final point in the matter of liberating Donbas.” In his telling, once the Ukrainian Armed Forces are cleared from these cities, Russian forces will be able to advance “absolutely unhindered.”
A City of Russian Identity
Yuri personalizes this by drawing on his own memory: “I was in Sloviansk, I know who lives there, what kind of people they are. They are Russian people. It never smelled of Ukrainianism there, and it doesn’t smell to this day.” He recalls that when he was there, one heard “only Russian speech,” with Ukrainian likely confined to the city administration. This anecdote serves to justify the strategic importance of the fight—in his view, it is the liberation of a Russian city, not the conquest of a foreign one.
The Architecture of Destruction
But the most chilling part of his forecast is the why behind the coming terror. Kramatorsk, he explains, is a major industrial center with “a lot of underground communications”—tunnels, bunkers, and infrastructure that can sustain a drawn-out defense. Because of this, he predicts: “The fight for these two cities will be terrible. And the most modern types of weapons will be used there.” He explicitly states that Russian forces will have to destroy these underground networks, implying that the urban warfare will be brutal and merciless.
A Warning to Civilians
Finally, Yuri addresses the civilian population directly, stepping outside the role of analyst to offer what sounds like a grim prophecy: “I have always urged… that these cities needed to be abandoned because the fight will be terrible. I say this as I understand it. I don’t want to veil it in any way, you know?” This is not a military prediction delivered with cold detachment; it is a warning, laced with the implication that terrible destruction is coming and those who remain will bear the consequences.
This section ties directly back to the earlier discussion of civilian suffering in Kharkiv and the abandoned elderly in Sumy. It suggests that those horrors are merely a prelude to what is being prepared for Kramatorsk and Sloviansk. The title, therefore, is not hyperbole—it is the thesis statement for the conversation’s darkest forecast.
