IA – The Russian stance is that it’s a managed withdrawal to the Donbass. Which is why they have abandoned all their equipment!
It was bad in Syria when they tried to legitimise Russian propaganda for that campaign, including pouring doubt over chemical attacks. Unfortunately, that was easier to convince, due to the existence of bad elements in Syria besides Assad. It didn’t matter that the Russians and Assad were targeting civilians; they could play on anti-Muslim bigotry and associate victims as terrorists (which is ironic, given these people often cry about anti-Muslim bigotry back home and in the Israel-Palestine conflict, rightly or wrongly). They could label groups like the White Helmets as a terrorist front, with no evidence, because of this.
However, they have overplayed their hand here. They have tried with the assertions that Ukraine is riddled with Nazis and far-right, but it hasn’t stuck. The public can see who the aggressor is, who is committing the atrocities, and claims of the Nazi nature of Ukraine look ridiculous when they act like any other nation defending its sovereignty against a foe which uses neo-Nazi mercenaries for their cause.
