СовьетСпай · published 2 days ago ·
found by watching this channel
"You will accept our ultimatums!!! The end soon?" – Mardan on Abu Dhabi talks
Вы примете наши ультиматумы!!! Скоро конец!?
What the site found
Pushes the agenda · agenda: US-Russia talks decide Ukraine's fate
Belief the Pravda network pushes: Russia and the United States should negotiate Ukraine's future without Europe, while Ukraine and the West block peace and threaten Russia.
Host Sergei Mardan and his guest Alexander Bobrov say the Abu Dhabi and Moscow talks are really Russia–US talks held while Europe waits outside, that Europe must accept Russia's ultimatum, that Ukraine is only a pretext, and that Kyiv and its European handlers have bluffed in past agreements.
The video says · at 5:32 · quote checked against the transcript
“Negotiations are essentially underway between Russia and the United States. This means the largest European countries are being held in the waiting room, and they're incredibly worried.”
Negotiations are essentially underway between Russia and the United States. This means the largest European countries are being held in the waiting room, and they're incredibly worried.
The video presents Ukraine's fate as something Russia and the US settle while Europe is kept out ("after the adults have talked"), calls Ukraine "nothing more than a pretext", and blames "the Kyiv authorities and their European handlers" for the Minsk-era "diplomatic bluff". This matches agenda 1 and goes beyond the speakers simply stating their own opinion, because it recasts who is blamed and who decides.
The Pravda stories it echoes
Closest stories from the Pravda network, by meaning. Each links to the site’s comparison with trusted Lithuanian news.
27 days ago · October 18 night strikes summary: RF and Ukraine news with front and video. Zelenskyy complaints and Rubio's response on Starshield
M low
F medium
2 verified differences
5 days ago · Ukraine settlement - only one of the negotiation points in Abu Dhabi
M low
F medium
3 verified differences
21 days ago · Michailas Onufrienko: Trump's special envoy Kellogg on Zelensky's proposal to freeze the conflict
M low
F low
2 verified differences
26 days ago · Western Voices: USA Softens Sanctions and Reviews Energy and Ukraine Relations Policy
M low
F low
3 verified differences
Transcript (en, 1583 lines)
0:03 Hello, this is the Soviet. Let's get
0:05 going.
0:06 >> Hello everyone. I'm Sergei Mordan.
0:09 So, the story with the negotiations
0:11 continues—let's call it the Abu Dhabi
0:14 negotiations, even though they're over.
0:18 And today there was another continuation
0:20 of the negotiations in Moscow. And then
0:22 there will be negotiations
0:26 halfway to America, uh, in Ireland,
0:29 where these two Trump representatives,
0:32 Comrade Kushner and Comrade Uitkov,
0:35 people of no particular status and no
0:39 clear biography, have gone.
0:42 Well, what difference does it make? We
0:44 certainly won't be baptizing children
0:46 with them. They're on a different matter
0:48 .
0:50 What did they agree on?
0:52 That's the question everyone, anyone
0:55 interested in politics, is asking each
0:57 other.
0:59 It's clear that Telegram channels,
1:01 television, and radio are simply clogged
1:04 with an endless stream of news.
1:07 For the past four or five days, the news
1:10 broadcasts have been filled with just
1:12 one topic: the Abu Dhabi negotiations.
1:17 Well, if you're an ordinary citizen, a
1:19 normal person living a normal, everyday
1:22 life, you periodically jump into the car
1:25 , jump in, turn on the radio, and hear
1:27 the chant "Abu Dhabi, bubbabu,""Uitkov
1:30 Kushner,""bub-bubbabu,""Zelensky."
1:33 It's impossible to understand anything.
1:36 For me, since, oh, yesterday was a day
1:38 off, I caught myself thinking exactly
1:40 this.
1:42 You open Telegram, and automatically
1:45 your hand reaches out and starts
1:47 watching.
1:49 What's so interesting in the world?
1:50 Maybe I'll miss something. But I didn't
1:54 miss anything. It was all Abu Dhabi. I
1:57 had to pull myself together, you know,
2:00 read carefully, make some selections.
2:03 Only after that did I more or less form
2:06 my own picture.
2:10 And any analyst, any person who has
2:12 spoken out about this story in the past
2:16 few days—and you should clearly
2:18 understand this—is sharing their own
2:22 perspective on what's happening.
2:26 That is, negotiations taking place at
2:29 the highest level cannot have any leaks
2:34 This is always an information operation
2:37 that must, well, firstly, make the very
2:40 framework, the very essence of the
2:43 negotiations, absolutely impenetrable to
2:46 prying eyes.
2:48 It must disinform and mislead the enemy
2:50 , and here there is more than just one
2:53 enemy.
2:54 It is an entire coalition.
2:57 That is, ah, you need to conceal your
2:59 own intentions and your true goals.
3:04 So, uh, I formulate it as I see it. What
3:08 do I see?
3:09 Well, actually, I spoke about this on
3:11 Monday, I spoke about this on Saturday,
3:14 and my position has not changed.
3:17 In order to achieve peace, and it is
3:20 indeed just around the corner. I am
3:23 absolutely convinced of this.
3:26 Europe will have to accept the Russian
3:29 ultimatum.
3:32 The basic parameters of this ultimatum,
3:34 so to speak, this proposal for
3:36 negotiations, were made back in December
3:38 2021. This is the so-called Lavrov
3:43 It was about a new structure for
3:47 European security.
3:50 All Russia demanded five years ago, and
3:54 all it demands now, is its own European
3:58 security, because we are a European
4:02 country and we are interested in the
4:06 situation on our western border.
4:10 That is, whether trade and economic ties
4:13 with the European Union will be restored
4:17 there.
4:18 Whether they will not be restored will
4:20 depend on the extent to which they will
4:21 be restored, and that means how the
4:23 issue of sanctions on frozen Russian
4:24 assets will be resolved.
4:26 This, in particular, is a fundamental
4:29 issue that any state authority, any
4:32 state system, always addresses—it is a
4:36 matter of security.
4:38 This is essentially why the state exists
4:43 It is the basis of a social contract
4:46 between, so to speak, the people and
4:50 those at the top. The authorities. The
4:53 authorities. The authorities can be
4:54 called by any name. It could be a tsar,
4:56 it could be a presidential republic, it
4:58 could be some elites of some kind—call
5:01 it whatever you like. The authorities
5:03 and the people.
5:04 So, accordingly, the people delegate
5:10 taxes, the right to violence, and
5:12 everything else so that the authorities
5:15 can ensure the long-term security of the
5:18 territory, the country, the fatherland.
5:21 That is why there is a war.
5:24 Have they reached a resolution to this
5:25 issue in Abuabi? Of course not.
5:29 Absolutely not.
5:32 Negotiations are essentially underway
5:36 between Russia and the United States.
5:41 This means the largest European
5:43 countries are being held in the waiting
5:45 room, and they're incredibly worried.
5:48 We'll talk about this in more detail now
5:50 . Some are already scratching at the
5:52 door. They can come in.
5:54 They can, but later, after the adults
5:57 have talked.
5:59 And China is somewhere out there. They
6:02 also have a very specific, vital,
6:04 material interest, but they're not
6:07 directly involved, so their position is
6:11 detached. So, we'll see how things end.
6:15 Ask me, where is Ukraine in this?
6:17 Ukraine is nothing more than a pretext.
6:20 And there's nothing offensive, not even
6:24 hurtful, in this statement of mine.
6:27 Yes, moreover, a huge number of people
6:30 in Ukraine have already, generally
6:32 speaking, realized this.
6:36 That is, it's difficult to accept, but,
6:38 well, there's been enough time.
6:42 Why did Witkov and Kushner come? Well,
6:45 this is a bit curious, isn't it? Perhaps
6:49 they enjoyed the snippets here, I don't
6:51 know. Maybe they just generally enjoy
6:53 visiting this beautiful city, the
6:54 capital of our Motherland, Moscow. Here
6:57 they're received in the Kremlin.
6:59 The Kremlin is like royalty.
7:03 Maybe they find this amusing, or maybe
7:04 it's something else entirely.
7:07 >> Lavrov's ultimatum refers to the draft
7:09 treaties with the United States and NATO
7:12 , which the Russian Foreign Ministry
7:14 published on December 17, 1921.
7:16 Non-expansion of the alliance to the
7:19 east and refusal to admit Ukraine. And
7:21 today, Putin spoke for over two hours in
7:24 the Kremlin with Witkoff and Kushner.
7:26 Alexander Bobrov joins the conversation
7:29 next.
7:30 >> Well, let's discuss it.
7:32 Alexander Bobrov, head of diplomatic
7:34 studies at the Institute for Strategic
7:36 Studies and Forecasts at RUDN University
7:38 , joins us.
7:40 Alexander Kirillovich, greetings.
7:43 >> Hello.
7:46 What stage do you think we're at now in
7:50 this long story called developing a new
7:53 European security structure?
7:58 Well, although perhaps I'm wrong, and
8:00 the negotiations are really about peace
8:02 in Ukraine, and no one cares about
8:03 anything else.
8:05 Everyone cares only about Ukraine.
8:09 No, well, of course, everyone cares not
8:11 only about Ukraine, but also about the
8:13 Eurasian security system.
8:15 Here I'll slightly correct the thesis
8:17 you voiced before our conversation. The
8:19 fact is that the European security
8:21 system has become dormant because it
8:24 hasn't worked. And the Ukrainian
8:26 conflict is a living example showing
8:28 that the old approaches to security,
8:30 which the United States of America has
8:33 been building since at least 1991, and
8:35 even after World War II, when they
8:37 ensured their military presence in
8:39 Europe, kept the Germans under their
8:41 control, and kept Russia and the Soviet
8:44 Union out of it—in fact, this system has
8:46 developed enormous cracks, and that's
8:49 why we are now developing a Eurasian
8:51 security system.
8:53 As for where we are now, depending on
8:55 how you measure it, it could be the
8:57 middle; we could have already crossed
9:00 the halfway point, or we could have
9:02 reached the very end.
9:04 What matters here isn't how these
9:06 provisions are being drafted, but how
9:09 implementable they are—that is, how
9:11 ready Ukraine is to implement everything
9:13 that's ultimately agreed upon.
9:17 Because we've repeatedly encountered
9:19 situations where diplomats seemingly
9:21 agreed on everything, only to discover
9:23 later that we were deceived, no one
9:25 wanted to implement anything, and
9:27 ultimately, all the good that was
9:29 enshrined in the Minsk agreements or
9:31 previous versions of the conflict
9:33 settlement—they ultimately became
9:35 bywords for this diplomatic bluff
9:37 perpetrated by the Kyiv authorities and
9:40 their European handlers.
9:44 But here's the question: why are the
9:47 negotiations taking place in such a
9:50 complex organizational format?
9:53 What do I mean?
9:55 Well, let's say, like the Paris or San
9:58 Francisco congress.
10:01 Diplomats, representatives, of various
10:03 countries, would gather, sit and talk
10:05 for a long time, draft some documents,
10:08 and so on and so forth.
10:12 Some say that analogies with the
10:15 politics and diplomacy of the 19th and
10:18 20th centuries don't work at all now.
10:23 Well, I do have a question: why don't
10:24 they work?
10:26 But I still recall the last large
10:28 similar congress.
10:31 In Yalta or Tehran, heads of state would
10:34 sit in the same way with a huge number
10:37 of their key aides, ministers, and
10:39 generals, and draft the parameters of
10:41 this very agreement.
10:45 But here, instead of substantive work—
10:48 well, which is apparently supposed to
10:50 demonstrate, well, the fact that the war
10:53 is ongoing, and therefore the time
10:55 hasn't come yet—there are some people
10:57 without status, just special
10:59 representatives: the US President's
11:02 Special Representative, the Russian
11:04 President's Special Representative—also
11:06 , in general, a rather unclear status.
11:11 And some, well, representatives of
11:13 Ukraine come and talk about something.
11:16 And then there's this swirl of activity
11:18 , everyone's traveling somewhere,
11:20 talking, passing messages to each other
11:22 . Explain, why is this so? Why is it so
11:25 complicated?
11:27 And in general, with such a complicated
11:29 setup, is it even possible to reach any
11:31 kind of end result, or are these
11:33 negotiations just for the sake of
11:35 negotiations?
11:37 >> No, absolutely not. These are, of course
11:39 , negotiations that must yield concrete
11:42 results.
11:43 But for us to witness such a beautiful
11:45 conference with the participation of
11:47 heads of state and heads of government,
11:49 reminiscent of Yalta, Tehran, or at
11:52 least the Congress of Vienna, and to
11:54 know the dancing congress that laid the
11:56 foundation for the 19 th-century
11:58 European security system, this is
12:00 precisely what diplomats and special
12:02 representatives must do.
12:05 We're, of course, used to seeing foreign
12:08 ministers as diplomats first and
12:09 foremost, but the negotiating format is
12:12 currently evolving in such a way that
12:14 the key participants are those who are
12:16 trusted by the president.
12:20 Therefore, it doesn't matter what a
12:22 person's position is called—whether it's
12:24 an aide to the president or a special
12:25 representative on a particular issue.
12:28 First and foremost, this is a person the
12:30 president trusts as much as he trusts
12:31 himself.
12:32 And that's why these very people,
12:34 representing the Russian Federation, the
12:36 United States, and Ukraine, are leading
12:37 these negotiations.
12:39 The foundation is now being laid for the
12:41 agreements that will have to be signed
12:44 by the heads of state. Therefore, I
12:46 certainly don't rule out a summit in a
12:48 variety of formats.
12:50 This includes the possibility of holding
12:52 an APC summit with the participation of
12:54 the heads of state of Russia, China, and
12:55 the United States.
12:58 Perhaps there will be a presidential
12:59 visit to the G20.
13:02 And there, we will at least see the
13:03 institutions of multilateral diplomacy
13:05 with the participation of senior
13:06 officials.
13:09 But for them to come and sign an
13:11 agreement, it must be approved by
13:13 trusted people, the very diplomats who
13:15 are currently leading these negotiations
13:17 in Abudawa.
13:19 And because behind every comma, behind
13:23 every word, there are vastly different
13:26 approaches.
13:27 That is, we say one thing, and the
13:29 United States and Ukraine mean it in
13:31 fundamentally different ways.
13:34 That's why they are working there as the
13:36 main representatives of the negotiating
13:38 delegations.
13:40 This includes Vladimir Stislavovich
13:42 Medinsky, Deputy Foreign Ministers
13:44 Rebkov and Goluzin, representatives of
13:46 the Ministry of Defense, and the
13:48 relevant expert groups, which also
13:50 include representatives from the
13:52 Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the
13:54 Ministry of Defense.
13:57 This is a multi-layered effort aimed at
14:00 ensuring that the final diplomatic text
14:02 , which will form the basis for the
14:05 regulation, is free from any ambiguities
14:07 and cannot be twisted in a way that
14:09 would ultimately negate all these
14:12 efforts.
14:13 This is precisely why this is such
14:15 complex, painstaking work, and it is not
14:17 always measured in rounds of
14:18 negotiations. You know, Andrei
14:20 Andreevich Gromyka once said that it is
14:22 better to negotiate for 100 years than
14:25 to wage war for just one day. But since
14:27 we have already found ourselves in
14:28 situations where these military actions
14:30 are ongoing, they cannot end on an
14:32 uncertain note.
14:33 They must end with the signing of a
14:35 peace treaty that will address the root
14:37 causes of the conflict itself.
14:39 This is the complexity of this
14:42 negotiating format.
14:44 >> Thank you very much for your comment.
14:49 studies at the Russian University of
14:52 Strategic Studies and Forecasting, was
14:54 on air last week, just
14:56 >> for reference. The Abu Dhaba round took
14:59 place on November 10th and 11th. A major
15:01 prisoner exchange was agreed upon there
15:03 . Vladimir Medinsky was also at the
15:05 Kremlin meeting, and now Sergei Mordan.
15:08 Regarding why Merz and Macron are
15:10 suddenly in such a rush.
15:13 Here's
15:13 >> what I think.
15:17 This is basically confirmed by
15:19 statements from both Putin and Wittkoff
15:22 , although, in general, there's no point
15:25 in citing them.
15:28 And this is also confirmed by the
15:30 completely inexplicable, and rather
15:32 shameful, activity that both Macron and
15:35 Merz have been displaying over the past
15:37 day and a half.
15:40 That is, literally a week and a half ago
15:45 So, Merz came out and, you know, in
15:47 those Hitler-like tones—the German
15:50 language conjures up such associations,
15:52 of course—he said, yes, we will never,
15:55 never, never surrender, yes, we will
15:58 support Ukraine, no negotiations with
16:01 Russia.
16:03 And then, in a rush, Merz says that, of
16:06 course, the time has come, and he's
16:08 always ready to talk to President Putin
16:13 And Macron suddenly displays some
16:15 surprisingly peaceful attitude.
16:18 This isn't an attempt at separate
16:20 negotiations.
16:22 This is a clear understanding that the
16:24 conflict is entering its final phase.
16:28 And it's ending quite differently than
16:30 they expected five years ago.
16:33 And the key here is to be at the
16:35 forefront of whoever can, well, achieve
16:38 , let's say,
16:43 the most optimal, I won't say good,
16:46 relations with Russia after the war ends
16:51 Well, that means, at least, the position
16:54 for future negotiations on normalization
16:57 , on restoring economic ties, that
17:00 position will be better held by whoever
17:03 is, so to speak, first at the start
17:06 today.
17:07 But it's crucial here to avoid a false
17:10 start.
17:11 The key here is always choosing the
17:13 right moment.
17:14 As Lenin said, "Yesterday was too early
17:16 , tomorrow will be too late."
17:20 When every politician asks this question
17:23 , "Where is the turning point?"
17:28 And ultimately, if we're talking about
17:31 the configuration of how the war will
17:33 end, this, I repeat, is nothing more
17:36 than my personal version of how I
17:39 imagine it.
17:42 The United States is changing the format
17:45 of its, in principle, participation in
17:48 European affairs. This didn't begin
17:51 under Trump.
17:54 That is, the first declaration that the
17:56 United States can no longer rule the
17:58 entire world and be responsible for
18:00 everything was made, believe it or not,
18:02 by Barack Obama.
18:04 Obama, whom Trump hates. But he is
18:07 essentially the successor to this
18:09 ideology, which originated within the
18:12 American elite.
18:16 For the United States, Europe today is a
18:20 competitor, with whom, well, there is a
18:24 partnership somewhere, on whom there are
18:28 instruments of pressure through military
18:33 spending, through defense structures,
18:36 but the power of this instrument is
18:40 simply declining day by day.
18:45 Therefore, Washington naturally views
18:47 Europe as a competitor.
18:49 In the long term, they are interested in
18:51 weakening the European Union, or better
18:54 yet, its disintegration.
18:56 In this sense, the approaches of Russia
18:59 and the United States are 100%aligned.
19:03 Neither Russia nor the United States
19:05 need a united Europe.
19:09 And the sooner the European Union
19:11 collapses, the sooner we'll agree on a
19:14 big joint corporate party.
19:16 Well, I'm exaggerating, but that's
19:18 roughly it.
19:22 The Europeans, it seems to me, are
19:24 slowly beginning to grasp a simple idea
19:29 I repeat, this is what started the war,
19:33 and the results of 1991 are being
19:36 declared null and void.
19:42 That historic strategic defeat inflicted
19:45 on the Soviet Union in the Cold War—
19:48 that's what they postulate, it was
19:51 postulated in a united West—is no longer
19:54 valid.
19:55 It's being declared irrelevant.
20:01 The war began because Europe's eastward
20:04 expansion encountered Russian bayonets.
20:11 So, if you're willing, you can, of
20:13 course, discuss the issue of whether the
20:15 war is aggressive or non-aggressive,
20:18 who's doing what, where, and where. It's
20:20 all empty. It's pointless.
20:23 Anyone who is even slightly familiar
20:25 with world history, well, even slightly
20:27 surprised by these words, will say: "
20:29 You're out of your mind.
20:32 Wars don't start because someone is,
20:34 well, pathologically cruel or just wants
20:37 to attack someone.
20:40 No, there's always a reason.
20:43 Europe, yes, is close to realizing that
20:46 it has lost this war, this clash.
20:50 And yes, the consequences of this loss
20:53 will be very grave, of course.
20:57 Therefore, we are now witnessing, well,
21:00 by and large, the final salvos of a long
21:04 war.
21:05 This does not mean that the war will end
21:08 tomorrow.
21:09 No, it would be good if it ended in the
21:12 spring.
21:15 But these negotiations and the format in
21:18 which they are taking place, and all
21:20 this political entourage around them, he
21:23 says:" Well, I don't know, personally,
21:26 to be honest with you, he inspires me
21:29 with great optimism. Great optimism. We
21:32 , in general, have crossed that very
21:35 line.
21:37 After Abu Dhabi, Merz did indeed say he
21:39 was ready for a phone call with Putin
21:41 and didn't rule out a meeting in Miami
21:43 in December. And Barack Obama said that
21:46 America isn't the world's policeman in
21:49 September 2013. Peace by spring is
21:52 Sergei Mordan's forecast, and only time
21:55 will test it.
21:56 >> We now have the following topic.
22:00 Joining us is Sergei Fyodorov, a leading
22:02 research fellow at the Institute of
22:04 Europe of the Russian Academy of
22:05 Sciences. Sergei Matveyevich, hello.
22:08 >> Welcome. A
22:10 >> completely surprising story, one that
22:13 requires expert commentary.
22:17 French President Macron has spent, well
22:20 , quite a few dollars over the last year
22:23 and a half to two years.
22:26 So, he was building this concept of a
22:29 dual nuclear umbrella.
22:31 Clearly, Europe still has the American
22:33 nuclear umbrella, since all of them are
22:35 NATO members.
22:37 But he also offered some countries dual
22:39 protection in the form of a French
22:41 nuclear umbrella.
22:43 Then the following incident occurred.
22:45 And the Germans announced they would be
22:48 developing long-range missiles with a
22:50 strike range of up to 2,000 km. So,
22:53 essentially, they're medium-range
22:54 missiles.
22:55 And Paris realized that they would
22:58 automatically become a target for a
23:01 Russian retaliatory strike. So, who are
23:03 such missiles needed against? And so,
23:06 strange movements begin. My question for
23:10 you is this: Are these uncalculated
23:15 scenarios? So, when this strategy was
23:18 being drawn up in Paris, they didn't
23:20 consider how it might end?
23:23 Or, we need to look at all of this in a
23:25 broader context.
23:26 Take the talks in Abu Dhabi. Gradually,
23:29 the parties are opening up negotiations
23:31 with Europe. And then the question
23:33 arises: who will be the main peacemaker
23:36 in Europe? Your opinion, please.
23:38 >> You know, first of all, regarding this
23:42 dual
23:45 umbrella of the American and French.
23:49 Initially, the talk was about Macron
23:51 speaking, I think it was in March of
23:53 this year, if I'm not mistaken, about
23:56 forward deterrence, that is, the
23:58 deployment of French Rafale fighters,
24:01 nuclear-capable carriers, in several
24:03 countries, about ten countries.
24:06 The last ones were the Finns, who joined
24:08 in, you know, on September 14th.
24:12 On October 27th, there was a joint
24:14 meeting with the French, apparently
24:16 regarding the details of Finland's
24:19 participation in this
24:23 Macron proposal.
24:25 So, here I'm a little confused about the
24:27 difference between concerns about these
24:29 long-range missiles that Germany and
24:32 France, among others, will be making or
24:34 are already making.
24:37 And the question of whether these
24:41 medium-range missiles will be armed with
24:45 nuclear warheads?
24:48 So far, at least in France, they haven't
24:51 They had naval missiles on submarines,
24:55 but they also had corresponding missiles
24:58 on glides, which are suspended from
25:02 aircraft.
25:03 That's it.
25:05 But frankly, I haven't heard anything
25:07 about these 2,000-range missiles armed
25:10 with warheads.
25:13 That's why I think there might be some
25:16 misunderstanding, or what caused
25:19 Macron's concern isn't entirely clear,
25:21 because, as far as I understand, he
25:24 called for not being afraid to strike
25:27 deep into Russia, meaning using weapons
25:31 They supplied Scalp missiles along with
25:34 the British, which, you know, the
25:36 Ukrainians used.
25:39 So, to be honest, I don't quite
25:41 understand what Macron is worried about
25:43 , and why he suddenly became concerned
25:45 about Germany's decision—that is,
25:48 whether it's possible to produce these
25:50 missiles or use them.
25:53 That's why, well, it sounds a bit, well
25:57 , not entirely appropriate, so to speak
26:01 , because today Macron stated, you know
26:04 , on the sidelines of this European
26:08 Political Community, which is currently
26:12 meeting in Dublin, that it is necessary
26:15 , that supposedly about 40 countries
26:18 participating in this gathering have
26:21 agreed on how to understand European
26:23 security. That's it. So, what do they
26:26 need to do with this common platform for
26:28 negotiations with Russia? True, he
26:30 didn't mention participation in the
26:33 Ukraine negotiations, at least. True, he
26:36 didn't give any more specifics. That's
26:38 it. But nevertheless, that's where
26:40 things stand for now.
26:42 So, so, what was it that worried Macron
26:45 about the relationship with the Germans
26:48 ?
26:49 Frankly speaking, I
26:54 can't really judge that yet.
26:56 >> You know, I was just observing this
26:59 strangely growing belligerence in Paris
27:02 —and it's not that I think the French
27:05 shouldn't or can't be belligerent there
27:09 ; of course, they can.
27:11 Why not?
27:14 But, looking at the real state of
27:16 affairs in the French economy and in
27:18 terms of electoral cycles, well, in
27:21 general, a picture emerges that would
27:23 explain this
27:27 political stance.
27:30 And I had the idea that, both then and
27:34 now, Macron was, among other things,
27:37 trying to attract attention.
27:40 You won't believe Putin.
27:43 Well, I mean, right now it was actually
27:45 stated directly that he was ready to
27:47 represent Europe in negotiations with
27:55 But he also called and visited in 1922.
27:57 So, it was a kind of show, which many
27:59 have already forgotten, but back then it
28:01 also caused some astonishment.
28:03 I mean, why so much action and so little
28:07 results?
28:09 Well, you know, France has always
28:12 positioned itself in Europe, at least as
28:15 a major military-political player.
28:18 It was, of course, inferior to Germany
28:21 economically, and even more so now.
28:24 Now, so to speak, it is becoming known
28:27 as the sick man of Europe.
28:30 So, in my opinion, it has adopted this,
28:32 so to speak, this honorable mission from
28:34 Great Britain.
28:37 That's why, nevertheless, the ambitions
28:40 of France, a country that considers
28:42 itself a middle power, but nevertheless
28:45 with global interests, this desire to
28:47 play in a league beyond some of its
28:50 capabilities, is always present.
28:55 That's why France is concerned about its
28:57 relations with Germany, particularly
29:00 Germany's plans to make the Bundeswehr
29:02 the main military force in Europe.
29:06 In this regard, France, it seems to me,
29:08 has no intention of relinquishing its
29:10 military-political leadership.
29:13 Hence all these initiatives, forward
29:15 deterrence, and, consequently, this
29:18 discussion of European security issues
29:21 at the meeting, that is, at the
29:23 conference in Dublin—all of this is key
29:27 for Macron.
29:29 Especially since, after six months,
29:31 Macron is stepping down from active
29:33 political activity, vacating his place
29:36 at the Élysée Palace.
29:38 So, for now, he needs to—at least,
29:41 domestic policy matters are simply in
29:43 shambles.
29:45 Therefore, it's very important for him
29:47 to also make his mark on the foreign
29:48 policy scene.
29:50 In my opinion, the combination of these
29:53 considerations is what's driving Macron
29:56 to talk about himself as one of the
29:58 possible
30:01 mediators who could participate in the
30:04 discussion of a diplomatic settlement of
30:07 the conflict in Ukraine.
30:10 >> And to what extent would he be suitable
30:12 as a mediator for other European
30:15 partners? What do you think?
30:18 You know, well, first of all, Macron's
30:21 big problem, like all of our former
30:23 European partners, is
30:27 that they demonized Russia. And that's
30:30 why Macron has now said so many nasty
30:32 things about us, the non-governmental
30:34 organizations, and continues to do so.
30:37 So, to declare himself a mediator after
30:39 everything that happened is somehow, you
30:41 know, not entirely ethical, I would even
30:44 say, in a political sense.
30:46 That's it. Although, unfortunately,
30:48 politics is a matter where ethics may
30:50 not be the most important thing. That's
30:53 why
30:56 the task is to participate in these
30:59 trilateral discussions, no matter what,
31:03 to prevent the Ukrainian issue from
31:06 being resolved in discussions between
31:09 the US, Russia, and Ukraine.
31:14 And, in any case, to make these
31:17 negotiations accessible to Europe.
31:22 That's the main thing.
31:24 Macron was very happy when he said that
31:26 it was wonderful that they had destroyed
31:28 the spirit of Anchorage, which, you see
31:30 , had fizzled out thanks to Europe's
31:34 Now, it seems to me, they will try to do
31:37 the same to some extent, given the
31:39 emerging signs of, well, if not a
31:41 glimmer of hope, then at least progress
31:43 in terms of a diplomatic solution to the
31:46 Ukrainian conflict.
31:48 We'll see what the Europeans have to say
31:51 about this in Dubna, where the American
31:54 visitors who were in Moscow today will
31:57 arrive today or tomorrow.
31:59 And what will they bring with them after
32:04 the talks in the Kremlin for the
32:07 Europeans 'attention?
32:10 >> Yes, we will, of course, be watching.
32:12 Thank you very much, Sergey Matveyevich
32:14 Sergey Fyodorov was on our broadcast, a
32:16 leading researcher at the Institute of
32:19 Sciences.
32:20 The main unknown in this equation is
32:29 Europe's focus on continuing the war.
32:31 It was also rational.
32:34 That is, initially, the focus was on
32:36 inflicting a complete strategic military
32:38 defeat on Russia.
32:40 This didn't work out, as you understand
32:45 Then Europe developed a strategy of
32:46 military exhaustion for Russia, that is
32:48 , maintaining the conflict in Ukraine
32:50 for as long as possible.
32:53 Clearly, this is difficult; it costs
32:56 both money and the Russian Federation's
32:59 own resources.
33:01 Well, the main thing is to buy time.
33:04 Another question: do they really have
33:07 the time they're trying to buy
33:09 themselves, or not?
33:12 Because in the next electoral cycle, the
33:14 political elites of the largest European
33:16 countries will most likely change.
33:19 We'll see.
33:21 >> Finland joined the French forward
33:24 deterrent on September 14, but it won't
33:27 have any peacetime nuclear weapons.
33:30 Germany is building 2,000-kilometer
33:31 missiles together with Britain. The
33:34 deadline is the 1930s.
33:36 And in Dublin today, about 40 countries
33:38 are preparing a declaration: "Deciding
33:40 Europe's security together with
33:42 Europeans."
33:43 >> Now we'll talk about extramarital
33:45 affairs and their dangers. Yes. Yes.
33:49 So, and today he suffered, well, how did
33:51 he suffer today?
33:54 He suffered, apparently, when the
33:57 entrepreneur, founder of the Nvidia
34:00 corporation, CEO Jensen Huang, entered
34:03 into these very extramarital affairs.
34:07 I don't know if you've seen him or not.
34:11 Perhaps you've seen him in photographs
34:14 somewhere—a short, handsome, elderly
34:17 Chinese man.
34:19 He always wears this short, fashionable
34:21 , ah, leather jacket. He has such a
34:24 noble gray hair.
34:26 Ah, well, it's obvious he takes great
34:28 care of himself, like two hours a day at
34:31 the gym.
34:33 It's hard to stay in shape at 63, right
34:36 What did you think?
34:38 Well, actually, when you see such a fit
34:41 , athletic man in the last throes of his
34:44 youth, you can always expect some kind
34:47 of trouble.
34:50 And Mr. Huang's fate is living proof of
34:53 that.
34:55 But it's not even about, as some say,
34:58 the fact that he was found to have
35:00 extramarital affairs.
35:03 Although I would argue with that, and
35:06 I'll tell you why.
35:08 The thing is, the woman the
35:14 newspapers reported him having a
35:17 romantic relationship with, also Chinese
35:20 , was discovered by someone, probably
35:23 the intelligence services, that she's
35:26 not just Chinese, not just a
35:28 businesswoman, but also a Chinese spy or
35:31 intelligence officer.
35:34 So how should we talk about Chinese
35:36 intelligence officers?
35:38 Are they spies or intelligence officers
35:39 ? I think if a Chinese person is
35:42 conducting intelligence work on Russian
35:45 territory, he's a spy. And then,
35:47 accordingly, he's subject to martial law
35:51 But if he's dabbling in the secrets of
35:53 an American corporation, then he's most
35:55 likely an intelligence officer.
35:59 At this point, it seems to me, our goals
36:01 , objectives, and interests actually
36:04 align.
36:05 Anyway,
36:07 this woman, Alice, is also a Huang.
36:10 What puzzles me is that not all of them
36:12 are Huangs, right?
36:15 Like Don Pedrov in Brazil, or is this
36:17 just a slander to take down a powerful
36:19 multimillionaire?
36:23 But the fact is, events unfolded rapidly
36:25 over the course of three days, when the
36:27 first news broke about those
36:31 photos of him and her drinking some wine
36:34 , smiling side by side at some reception
36:38 And, I repeat, less than three days
36:40 passed before today's resignation
36:42 announcement.
36:43 And, frankly, we Russians, and we normal
36:47 people in general, don't understand
36:51 their logic. That's it.
36:54 This isn't the first time the American
36:58 moralizing machine has destroyed the
37:02 careers of, well, absolutely brilliant
37:05 people, who, you know, as they say, have
37:10 done so much for their country that they
37:14 deserve not only a hero's medal or two,
37:20 but a monument in their homeland.
37:23 True, Comrade Huang's homeland is in the
37:26 People's Republic of China.
37:28 He's a classic first-generation Chinese
37:31 immigrant.
37:33 So, he was born in China, emigrated to
37:36 the States, studied, became everything,
37:39 created a corporation that is now worth
37:42 , mind you, 4 trillion dollars.
37:45 Well, the amount there is, well, it’s
37:48 completely impossible to comprehend.
37:50 But the fact is that the Nvidia
37:53 corporation, which produces, well, all
37:56 these buzzing things without which no
37:59 artificial intelligence works, is the
38:02 engine of this hysteria associated with
38:05 artificial intelligence.
38:08 Mr. Huang, this is the artificial
38:11 intelligence industry. Exactly. Exactly
38:16 This industry has gray hair, it’s 63
38:19 years old and of Chinese origin. And
38:22 this man who built all this is now being
38:28 eaten alive.
38:31 Pardon my French question.
38:33 For what?
38:35 And in my opinion, the story with the
38:38 Chinese spy, you know, who was leering
38:41 at him for all his secrets through his
38:44 bed—well, that’s some kind of nonsense,
38:47 right?
38:49 Naturally, I immediately remembered the
38:51 quote from Vysotsky.
38:52 There are spies with strong bodies. You
38:54 open their door, they go out the window
38:56 . Say that we finished this matter a
38:59 long time ago. A trip abroad. A song. If
39:03 suddenly you don’t know, listen later.
39:06 And here it’s roughly the same as what
39:10 happened with the CEO of, say,
39:12 McDonald’s.
39:14 I’m
39:19 not harming our own values here by
39:21 mentioning American corporations.
39:23 Am I taking too pro-American a position
39:26 , gentlemen? No. Well, excuse me, I’m a
39:28 person of the late Soviet era.
39:30 This is important to me. McDonald’s was
39:33 important to me, as it was to you, I
39:35 think. There you have it.
39:38 And Steve Insburg, or rather Easterbrugg
39:40 , was, then, the man who increased the
39:42 value of this very McDonald’s, if I’m
39:44 not mistaken, something like 10 times.
39:47 That is, he enriched shareholders, both
39:51 corporate and millions of private
39:53 shareholders. That is, he built a
39:56 gigantic business.
39:59 He raised him to some incredible state.
40:03 And he, too, and his system, were
40:05 devoured by simply because he had
40:08 an affair with his subordinate.
40:11 Moreover, he was divorced at the time,
40:15 and she was not married.
40:18 But no one cared, because you, a scumbag
40:20 and a scoundrel, have no right to have
40:23 an affair at work with your own honor.
40:26 Can you imagine, you're not allowed to
40:28 have an affair. And where else would a
40:30 working person have one? What, where?
40:32 Should he go to the Tretyakov Gallery,
40:34 or go to an exhibition at the theater
40:37 and meet people there? And this is pure
40:40 idiocy.
40:42 Seriously speaking, how will this whole
40:46 spy-dultery plot end?
40:50 And
40:52 the conclusions that can be drawn here
40:54 are, well, rather terrifying. I suggest
40:57 you listen to me carefully.
41:02 Most likely, the next stage of this
41:06 tabloid drama will be a sharp deflation
41:11 of the US stock market bubble.
41:16 So, well, you'll say, "We don't give a
41:19 damn about the American stock market.
41:21 What are you even doing pulling our leg
41:23 ?"
41:24 I insist that if the US stock market
41:27 collapses, and, oh, and at the same time
41:31 , economists are talking about some
41:34 pretty serious problems in the real
41:37 economy, then that global financial and
41:41 economic crisis will occur, the one I
41:44 like to talk about with my invited
41:47 guests on Saturdays, the day after
41:52 We'll talk about it.
41:55 And, accordingly, if this financial and
41:59 economic crisis really does hit the
42:02 world, and the fall of NVIDIA is that
42:06 classic black swan of the Solomon
42:09 Brothers type, which could happen, well
42:12 , it won't be a bad thing for anyone,
42:16 including us.
42:19 Therefore, I would personally advise you
42:22 to read the news, find out who Mr. Huang
42:24 is, who Alice Huang is, what Invision
42:27 Corporation is, what's going on there,
42:29 who's with whom, when, and why.
42:32 Well, and, as you remember, get ready to
42:35 check your buckwheat and stewed meat
42:37 supplies.
42:39 This is some unexpected advice for you.
42:44 Huang left his posts on November 11th.
42:47 Chief Financial Officer Colette Kress
42:49 has been temporarily appointed as head
42:50 of the campaign, and Beijing has
42:52 dismissed the espionage report as
42:54 slander. Nvidia's market capitalization
42:57 is around $ 4.5 trillion. Will this
42:59 story become a black swan for the market
43:01 ? We'll see.
43:04 For today's broadcast, for the first
43:07 part, I wanted to, for a rare occasion,
43:10 invite a real State Duma deputy, a real
43:13 legislator, to our studio, at least
43:16 remotely, to talk, well, ask what guides
43:19 them in general, how their minds work.
43:23 This is where my research interest was
43:26 awakened once again.
43:28 Well, naturally, my colleagues tried to
43:31 call several authors of the bill we'll
43:34 be discussing now, but it didn't work
43:37 out.
43:39 They all succinctly said, "There's no
43:42 way today.
43:44 We can't, we can't." I'm not even sure
43:46 you can do anything in principle. Oh
43:49 well.
43:50 I'll have to, so to speak, monologue on
43:54 yet another legislative product of our
43:58 State Duma.
44:01 So, just in case, what are we talking
44:03 about?
44:07 The State Duma voted in the first
44:10 reading for the amendment bill, the bill
44:13 on amendments.
44:15 There's a whole list of laws, including
44:18 , for example, criminal-administrative
44:20 legislation, establishing administrative
44:23 fines for disseminating materials.
44:26 Now, attention.
44:28 Here, it's best to highlight those that
44:31 discredit traditional Russian spiritual
44:34 and moral values and refuse to remove
44:36 them.
44:38 Well, remove materials that discredit
44:41 traditional Russian spiritual and moral
44:45 values.
44:47 And this is one of the favorite, well,
44:49 philosophical and ideological entities
44:52 that exist in our lives.
44:55 Naturally, we have to speak about them
44:57 with some caution, because they were, so
45:00 to speak, introduced, by proxy, into the
45:03 space of our public life by presidential
45:05 decree.
45:07 That's why everyone here is, generally
45:08 speaking, sucking in their stomachs a
45:10 little.
45:11 So, everyone understands that the decree
45:13 , of course, was written in the office
45:15 with real people in attendance, but the
45:17 decree written on the top is the decree
45:19 of the President of Russia, and that,
45:21 naturally, binds someone.
45:24 It seems the communists have recently,
45:27 so to speak, revived an old custom, like
45:29 : "What, you bastard, don't you like
45:31 Stalin?"
45:34 Well, you can change your name, but
45:35 that's their go-to, so to speak.
45:38 It's a well-used technique for political
45:40 debate. Well, not only them, though.
45:44 And so I, like everyone else, especially
45:47 all representatives of my generation,
45:50 the last Soviet, late Soviet generation
45:54 , which was fed up with traditional
45:57 spiritual Soviet values, just like that
46:00 , right here, right here.
46:05 And, accordingly, we were so fed up with
46:08 them in our youth that, with incredible
46:10 enthusiasm, starting in the late 1980s,
46:13 we rushed to shake the dust of these,
46:15 you know, false Soviet values from our
46:18 feet.
46:21 So, let's find out what exactly the
46:24 Soviet regime and those damned
46:26 communists were hiding from us.
46:29 What exactly were they hiding from us,
46:32 what joys did they deprive us of? What
46:35 did they watch in all those saunas and
46:39 those other mythologized Komsomol
46:42 sabbaths, so brilliantly described by
46:46 Yuri Polyakov?
46:49 I must say, looking back on those years
46:51 , there was nothing of the sort.
46:54 That is, nothing worth lashing out at.
46:59 Moreover, from 2026, a time when, so to
47:03 speak, fornication, debauchery, and any
47:06 kind of perversion are incredibly
47:09 accessible to any citizen with a mobile
47:12 phone and internet access, these joys
47:15 that those damned party officials
47:18 watched in safe houses and forbade
47:21 ordinary Soviet workers from watching
47:24 seem, in short,
47:27 absolutely ridiculous.
47:28 My God, what are we talking about? What
47:31 are we talking about? But
47:36 this discussion could have been ended
47:38 here, say, 10 years ago.
47:40 There's nothing to talk about. It's all
47:42 ridiculous.
47:44 So, it's 2026, and a new, renewed State
47:47 Duma comes in, and with stony faces and
47:51 glassy eyes, they unanimously vote for
47:54 the bill in its first reading.
47:58 So, these educated adults, many with
48:01 academic degrees, decide that the
48:04 country can't live without fines for
48:08 audiovisual products that discredit
48:17 And, what's more, they need to be
48:19 punished, and every scum and scum who
48:22 refuses to remove these damned
48:24 audiovisual materials.
48:27 Well, they probably need to be removed
48:29 from social media.
48:32 Here I'm kind of pausing, but on which
48:35 social media can one currently find
48:38 materials that discredit, ah,
48:43 values? I'll let you in on a secret. I'm
48:46 an active YouTube user.
48:51 And I know perfectly well that finding
48:53 any nudity or anything spiritually
48:56 uninspired on this very slow YouTube is
48:58 a dead giveaway.
49:01 Everything is copyrighted. And even
49:04 trying to insert a clip from any movie
49:07 is automatically punished by an
49:10 immediate ban. It's prohibited. So,
49:13 where can I scoop up this genuine
49:17 spirituality with a big ladle, so to
49:20 speak, on all Russian video hosting
49:24 sites, without exception?
49:28 When I'm too lazy, you know, downloading
49:31 torrents like an old man in a movie, it
49:33 really gives away my age. Under no
49:36 circumstances should you talk about this
49:39 in front of anyone under 45. That's it.
49:42 I do download it sometimes, but when I
49:45 need a translation, like my favorite one
49:47 , like, say, a translation of Goblin,
49:50 which also costs money, but you can buy
49:52 it somewhere in online cinemas, I, like
49:54 , as I'm used to, I download it from
49:57 torndo.
49:59 So, on all sorts of "NaruTube," on VK,
50:02 everything is publicly available there,
50:06 there are video and audio materials.
50:10 Well, there are tons of all sorts of
50:14 discrediting traditional Russian
50:17 spiritual and moral values, any you want
50:23 So, let's say I come home in the evening
50:27 and suddenly, suddenly, I get attacked,
50:30 and I say: "How can I, like, spend a
50:33 couple of hours today, spiritually
50:36 detached?"
50:38 Well, I'll just act like an old
50:42 anarchist.
50:44 I'll go against everyone else.
50:47 I'm about to go on air, with this idea,
50:50 all worked up, hair on end, I think I'll
50:53 show you, deputies, something soulless
50:56 on principle.
50:58 That could happen, yes, easily.
51:01 I'm not sure it's possible now, well, on
51:05 our sovereign Russian video hosting
51:08 sites, to watch the filmography of the
51:11 recently deceased, but renowned
51:14 pornographer Tinto Bras.
51:16 Have you heard of that? If you're more
51:19 or less old, like me, you've certainly
51:21 heard of it. This is our time, you
51:25 remember, when we were 20, 25, that was
51:30 the dawn of this, you know, old pervert
51:34 . Although, again, from our 2026, his
51:38 films look so naive, so puritanical,
51:42 that you feel a downright awkward
51:46 feeling, like once upon a time, the
51:50 curtain fell, a hormonal fog was in your
51:54 eyes. Pomerantintobras. I'm sure that
52:00 people who today
52:04 advocate for the preservation of
52:08 traditional Russian spiritual values
52:12 knew Tintabras inside and out 35 years
52:16 ago, watching him regularly. Moreover,
52:20 they even had favorite films, I don't
52:22 know which ones. Maybe it was the
52:24 classic Caligula. Or maybe it was
52:27 Peeping Tom, I don't know.
52:30 But they 100%watched him. And now Tinta
52:33 Bras is dead. You can watch him, I
52:35 repeat, on sovereign hosting services.
52:38 But not on free, slow-motion YouTube. So
52:41 who are you planning to fine? Gentlemen
52:45 of the Duma, I can't understand.
52:48 >> The bill on fines was supported by the
52:51 relevant Duma committee on November 9.
52:53 According to RIA Novosti, individuals
52:55 face fines from 5,000 to 20,000 rubles,
52:57 and companies up to a million. And if
53:00 you delete the material within 24 hours
53:02 , there is no fine.
53:05 Tinta Bras died on November 4 in Rome.
53:07 He was 93.
53:10 >> Our domestic online cinema is a rather
53:13 strange invention to me.
53:16 I repeat, I can't keep up with these
53:19 technological advancements.
53:21 We were just getting used to, uh, well,
53:24 let's take it one step at a time. So,
53:27 first there were video cassettes, then
53:30 DVDs.
53:31 Each of us, well, once a week, went to
53:34 Gorbushka, where we stocked up on this
53:37 endless assortment of this crap that was
53:41 impossible to watch.
53:43 There wasn't enough time. Then torrents
53:46 appeared, we learned how to download.
53:49 Some people stored it on hard drives,
53:52 some initially on discs, and recorded
53:55 DVDs, whatever was convenient for them.
53:59 Then online cinemas appeared.
54:03 I'll tell you honestly, I have a
54:05 subscription to probably all the Russian
54:07 online cinemas.
54:09 Well, it's not that expensive. But what
54:13 if I'm missing something? What if
54:14 something is out there somewhere. I'll
54:16 tell you this.
54:18 The main screen opens, and this iron
54:21 blockhead inside thinks it knows my
54:25 tastes.
54:27 It doesn't know a damn thing.
54:30 Russian artificial intelligence, even if
54:32 it wasn't invented by Minister Krovtsov
54:35 , knows nothing about my tastes.
54:38 It offers me countless
54:42 videos of crap, produced, well, by
54:45 countless domestic filmmakers.
54:50 They're producing, I repeat, I'm ready
54:52 to tell anyone, they're producing stuff
54:54 that, well, let's be polite, isn't worth
54:57 filming.
54:59 There's no need to waste money, life, or
55:01 energy on this.
55:04 You don't need to enroll in GITIS or
55:06 graduate from a higher directing course
55:09 to star in this garbage.
55:11 It's insulting.
55:13 It demeans human dignity and directly
55:16 contradicts one of Russia's traditional
55:19 spiritual and moral values, enshrined in
55:22 the Russian president's decree.
55:26 That's what Russian online cinemas offer
55:30 So I'll look at them, see what they're
55:31 offering me to watch.
55:34 I think, screw you, I don't want to
55:37 watch this.
55:41 I assume, in fact, that most of this
55:44 filmmaking—since it's made on the fly,
55:48 without any love, without any interest
55:51 in the profession, without any human
55:54 motivation at all—there's probably some
55:58 kind of, you know, dull, boring,
56:01 completely unexciting lack of
56:04 spirituality.
56:07 I mean, when even the late Tinta Braz
56:09 made films about lack of spirituality,
56:11 it was lively.
56:13 Yeah. But he was still quite a young man
56:15 then. He was really into it.
56:18 There he was, looking through the video
56:21 camera at the actress who was playing
56:23 some kind of woman.
56:26 And you could see that he was shaking,
56:28 and the audience was shaking, too.
56:30 This is what Russian filmmakers are
56:33 making today, this collective Sarik
56:35 Andrasyan.
56:36 It's not that it doesn't shake me, it
56:39 makes me not want to live.
56:41 What's there? Is there anything there
56:43 that contradicts spiritual and moral
56:45 values? Well, let's discuss it, actually
56:48 , what do they include?
56:50 What is there to contradict?
56:53 Human dignity, well, I already said it,
56:56 but the very fact that all this film
56:59 production is appearing is an insult to
57:01 human dignity, human rights and freedoms
57:05 I don't even understand what we're
57:07 talking about. Patriotism is complicated
57:11 here.
57:12 It's complicated when talentless
57:14 scoundrels make a film about patriotism
57:17 ; I think they should send the entire
57:20 film crew to GULAK for that.
57:23 Civic consciousness is unclear. Service
57:26 to the fatherland, responsibility for
57:28 its fate. Fine. And what about high
57:31 moral ideals?
57:33 A strong family, a strong family is one
57:35 of the traditional Russian spiritual and
57:38 moral values.
57:40 You know how many divorces there are in
57:43 Russia. Do you know? No. Well, let me
57:46 remind you. Let me remind you.
57:50 About eight years ago, the statistics
57:54 that stuck in my head were that 40%of
57:57 marriages ended in divorce within three
58:00 years, and then another 35%ended in
58:03 divorce within seven years.
58:08 A lot has happened since then, and now,
58:09 I think, the statistics are even more
58:11 catastrophic.
58:13 That is, the chances of getting married
58:15 and, so to speak, growing old and dying
58:17 with one spouse are
58:21 practically zero.
58:24 I'm not drawing any moral or ethical
58:27 conclusions here.
58:29 I'm simply stating that this is how life
58:33 works.
58:34 The family, as an institution, has
58:36 suffered a complete catastrophe.
58:39 And it's routine. No one is surprised by
58:43 No one is surprised at all. And,
58:46 therefore, it's good that people make
58:48 movies. People make movies.
58:52 But in those movies, it's acceptable to
58:55 say that the heroine has, say, two
58:59 marriages in her medical history, and
59:02 the hero four or five.
59:06 I personally know people, several decent
59:08 , good, kind people, who have been
59:10 married four or five times.
59:13 Well, that's just how life turned out.
59:16 Their lives are such good people, I
59:18 sincerely love them, but that's just how
59:20 life turned out.
59:23 So. Can this part of life be discussed
59:25 in a film, or is there no chance of
59:27 getting a distribution license for it?
59:30 In theory, there isn't any.
59:35 Well, the fact that in that case, a fair
59:38 share of Soviet classics would have to
59:41 be, uh, thrown out of, uh, the libraries
59:44 of these very same online cinemas.
59:47 It never occurred to anyone. Well, the
59:50 autumn marathon, well, here's an example
59:53 that's on the surface, you remember it.
59:55 Look, there's a young Basilashvili there
59:58 , there he is, hiding from his wife, her
60:01 mistress cheating on him in such a
60:04 humiliating way over the phone. Well,
60:06 the film is absolutely brilliant.
60:10 Or the film "Kindred," it's the same
60:12 thing.
60:13 It's about the tragedy of divorce.
60:17 That film by Nikita Sergeyevich
60:19 Mikhalkov, you want to ban that too?
60:21 Seriously?
60:23 And nothing will break there? How's your
60:27 ban? Would it be possible to ban Nikita
60:30 Mikhalkov's film? I think the ban would
60:34 break.
60:35 So who are you going to ban?
60:39 Films, then, that promote the denial of
60:43 humanism, the denial of mercy and
60:46 justice.
60:47 You know what comes to mind?
60:50 Films that denial of humanism, mercy and
60:54 Rambo, and First Blood. Well, classics.
60:57 I grew up on these.
60:59 He's my hero.
61:02 From the new John Wick.
61:05 Well, the first part is perfect. He
61:08 killed 300 people because gangsters
61:11 killed his dog. You see? Gangsters
61:14 killed his dog. And for that, John Wick
61:17 , a Russian, by the way, killed 300
61:19 people. That film should also be banned
61:23 Let's ban it. Right. Right.
61:27 Let people watch banned stuff in their
61:30 apartments in secret, so that it becomes
61:33 prestigious, like it was in the late
61:35 USSR.
61:37 That's how it will all end.
61:40 About divorces. Sergey Zakharov, a
61:43 demographer at the Higher School of
61:45 Economics, believes that more than half
61:47 of marriages in recent years could end
61:49 in divorce.
61:50 The autumn marathon aired in 1979,
61:52 Mikhalkov's family in 1981. Next up, a
61:55 conversation with an economist about the
61:58 Central Bank rate and mortgages.
62:01 >> And now economist Andrey Podoynitsyn
62:03 joins us.
62:05 We'll talk about a truly pressing issue
62:08 : Elvira Nabiullina.
62:11 Andrey Vladimirovich, I wholeheartedly
62:13 welcome you.
62:14 >> God bless you, Sergey Sarovich.
62:16 >> And God bless you too.
62:19 So, today Elvira Skhibzana said
62:21 something so absolutely right.
62:24 I really liked it.
62:27 My only regret is that she didn't, with
62:30 all that Roman bluntness, say it all to
62:33 the faces of that construction lobby
62:36 sitting there earlier, and listen to her
62:41 And to all the complaints she was faced
62:43 with, like demolishing the rate, there
62:45 should be affordable housing, we should
62:47 offer preferential loans.
62:49 What did she say?
62:51 And, my dears, it shouldn't be
62:54 unaffordable mortgages, but affordable
62:57 housing.
62:59 And here, uh, I'd like to draw the
63:01 attention of our esteemed viewers and
63:03 listeners.
63:04 After all, we're all adults, and many of
63:06 us have this in our heads. How much did
63:09 an apartment in your city cost, say,
63:12 five years ago?
63:14 And how much does a square meter cost
63:16 today?
63:18 And no one can wrap their head around
63:23 And so, trying to shift the problem onto
63:26 the head of the Central Bank has always
63:29 looked, well, a little strange.
63:32 I have the following question for you.
63:34 Is Nabiullina's statement a threat to
63:37 the construction lobby or not?
63:43 Sergey, I would put the question a
63:46 little differently.
63:48 So, we've discussed repeatedly here on
63:51 air that no amount of exercise with
63:53 preferential mortgages and preferential
63:56 programs will, in and of themselves,
63:59 improve housing affordability.
64:02 Housing affordability is the parameter.
64:05 Only one single measure improves housing
64:08 affordability: a radical expansion of
64:10 construction volumes.
64:12 Everything else is
64:14 >> construction. I apologize, I'm just
64:16 interrupting. Time is short. But it's
64:18 not profitable for construction
64:20 companies, for that very construction
64:22 lobby.
64:24 >> Their goal is to maximize profits, bucks
64:27 , and cash.
64:29 >> Okay, just a minute. So, we live in a
64:31 market economy, in a market economy.
64:34 Builders act completely logically and,
64:36 so to speak, understandably within their
64:38 paradigm.
64:40 Secondly, I wouldn't forget what share
64:43 of the cost of one square meter of
64:46 housing is the cost of financing.
64:50 Let's take, for example, such specific
64:52 things, specifically technical,
64:54 engineering-technical things,
64:56 >> how much, for example,
64:58 >> when in the past, in this year, I think
65:00 , there were problems with an airplane,
65:03 figures appeared online, accidentally
65:05 and not accidentally, about the
65:07 airplane's financial result and,
65:09 accordingly, the interest, the financial
65:11 burden on this very airplane, and what
65:13 share they constituted in the airplane's
65:16 profit.
65:18 I'm not going to claim the accuracy of
65:20 these figures now, but the parameters
65:23 were such as, for example, 146 billion
65:26 rubles.
65:28 The financial result, that is, the
65:30 overall profit, yes, but of those 146
65:33 billion, about 130 or 135 billion were
65:36 interest on servicing the financial
65:39 efforts of this aircraft.
65:41 That is, servicing the loans. That's the
65:45 big problem. Well, there was no need to
65:47 take out loans, excuse me.
65:49 >> Well, then, building
65:50 >> everything would be very simple.
65:51 >> No, well, yes, of course, then there
65:53 would be nothing to build. No loans, no
65:55 construction. Well, the logic here is as
65:57 straightforward as a shaft. The money
65:59 for construction has to come from
66:01 somewhere. Where from? It doesn't just
66:03 fall out of the sky.
66:05 In order to get, so to speak, accounts
66:07 from crow accounts, you first have to
66:09 take out a loan, build, hand over, and
66:10 then get the money from modest accounts
66:13 You know, it's the same with government
66:16 contracts.
66:17 Where will people get the money to carry
66:19 out all this construction? That's one
66:20 thing. Secondly, the cost of connections
66:23 , excuse me, right? That is, roads,
66:27 energy, water, sewage, all the
66:29 infrastructure—all of that is included
66:32 in the price per square meter.
66:35 Plus, in some cities, for example, in
66:37 the capitals, as far as I know, in
66:39 Moscow, there is definitely a certain
66:42 social burden. Naturally,
66:44 >> in principle, this is a good issue. True
66:47 , it can and can be addressed
66:48 differently, but nevertheless, it all
66:50 comes down to this square meter. Then a
66:52 situation arises when preferential
66:54 mortgages appear. Moreover, preferential
66:57 mortgages are somewhat non-selective
66:59 based on area.
67:01 That is, the same person—the same
67:02 individual, or a family—can take out
67:04 several preferential mortgages based on
67:06 formal criteria.
67:07 That is, they clearly don't need this
67:10 housing for personal consumption.
67:12 But for investment purposes, this is
67:14 again normal, logical behavior for
67:16 people who want to invest reliably, to
67:19 accumulate their resources.
67:21 It is impossible to hold these resources
67:23 in rubles, because they, uh, depreciate
67:25 rapidly, yes.
67:27 Just before our program, I looked at the
67:29 deflator from 2014 to 2026. Naturally,
67:32 people are investing in housing.
67:35 This is perfectly reasonable.
67:36 But the result is that if there are
67:38 preferential and non-preferential
67:40 mortgages, the interest rates on the
67:42 non-preferential and preferential
67:44 mortgages differ by a factor of
67:46 >> three to five. This means that the
67:49 monthly payment also differs by the same
67:52 amount. Well, almost the same factor,
67:55 >> So, a non-preferential
67:57 >> mortgage can cost 35-45,000 per month,
67:59 while a non-preferential mortgage can
68:01 cost 100. Accordingly, how many families
68:04 can afford 35-45 per month, and how much
68:06 ? A hundred or more? Clearly, all this
68:10 mass of people is coming into the market
68:12 . But how can this market grow three or
68:15 four times in volume? It's completely
68:17 impossible. It's fundamentally
68:19 impossible. The market has grown by
68:21 somewhere between 5%, 10%, and 15%.
68:24 But it's inelastic. If we leave it as a
68:28 market, it will be inelastic.
68:33 Andrei Vladimirovich, we have...Yes, and
68:35 you see, the internet went down, yes,
68:37 they called.
68:39 Well, I'll finish here. Today's
68:41 broadcast is almost over. And some
68:45 disappointing news for you, my friends.
68:49 -Well, no matter what the head of the
68:51 central bank says, no matter what the
68:54 esteemed economists say, as I understand
68:57 it, the affordable housing that Elvira
68:59 Nabiullina mentioned is not in sight
69:02 anytime soon.
69:04 Why? Well, for a rather long list of
69:07 reasons. One of these reasons, of course
69:10 , is the ongoing, yes, special military
69:13 operation. Here, in general, we need to
69:16 be aware of this.
69:19 Okay, and that's the end of my program
69:21 for today.
69:22 I'm happy to hand over the floor.
69:26 So, ah, my colleagues are telling me not
69:29 to rush.
69:31 I'm always ready to talk to you,
69:33 although we'll see each other tomorrow
69:35 at exactly the same time and discuss the
69:36 most important news.
69:39 As for apartments, I honestly don't
69:42 really understand all this hubbub of
69:45 blame-shifting.
69:47 Who's more to blame, who's less to blame
69:50 ? Well, we have a market economy, and it
69:52 wouldn't be any other way. I know
69:54 perfectly well how so-called state-owned
69:56 housing is built.
69:58 And it's a working, understandable, and
70:01 correct system for public sector
70:02 employees, for the military, for police
70:05 officers, for officials, for all people
70:07 who work for the state.
70:10 But, thank God, not everyone works for
70:13 the state.
70:15 And so, one way or another, something
70:18 will have to be done about it.
70:22 That is, why put people in a bind when
70:25 they basically can't afford any housing
70:28 because the interest rate on a
70:30 commercial loan is over 20%.
70:36 >> Nabiullina called the 14%rate justified
70:39 in the Duma today and said, "Citizens
70:41 don't need affordable mortgages, they
70:43 need affordable housing."
70:46 And in January, the aircraft developer
70:48 asked the government for a preferential
70:51 loan of 50 billion rubles. That was
70:54 Sergey Mordan's broadcast. Do you think
70:56 housing will become more affordable?
70:59 Let us know in the comments and
71:01 subscribe.
Judged by claude-sonnet-5.5-eu on 2026-11-14 18:20 UTC. A flag means “worth a look”; a person decides.