MOSCOW - Russian President Vladimir Putin has accused the West of “trying to cancel” Russia, as he cited the backlash against British author JK Rowling.
“Today they are trying to cancel a thousand-year-old country. I am talking about the progressive discrimination against everything connected with Russia,” Putin said in televised remarks, mentioning Russian music and literature. Putin likened “cancel culture” to Nazis trying to burn books in the 1930s. The Russian president also mentioned how British author JK Rowling had been “cancelled” because “she didn’t satisfy the demands of gender rights”.
Rowling has faced criticism for her views on transgender issues. She has previously said she is concerned about a “new trans activism”, saying it was “pushing to erode the legal definition of sex and replace it with gender”. The author has promised to match donations up to £1m to a charity she co-founded to help children in Ukraine.
The chief of the Russian army says Russia will now focus its main war effort on the “complete liberation” of the eastern Ukrainian Donbas region.
The defence ministry said Russia had been considering two options for its “special military operation” - one covering the whole of Ukraine and one focusing on the Donbas. The comments - carried by Russian state news agencies - hinted at a possible downgrading of Russia’s war aims. Russian forces have met strong resistance in the north of Ukraine and around Kyiv.
“Today they are trying to cancel a thousand-year-old country. I am talking about the progressive discrimination against everything connected with Russia,” Putin said in televised remarks, mentioning Russian music and literature. Putin likened “cancel culture” to Nazis trying to burn books in the 1930s. The Russian president also mentioned how British author JK Rowling had been “cancelled” because “she didn’t satisfy the demands of gender rights”.
Rowling has faced criticism for her views on transgender issues. She has previously said she is concerned about a “new trans activism”, saying it was “pushing to erode the legal definition of sex and replace it with gender”. The author has promised to match donations up to £1m to a charity she co-founded to help children in Ukraine.
The chief of the Russian army says Russia will now focus its main war effort on the “complete liberation” of the eastern Ukrainian Donbas region.
The defence ministry said Russia had been considering two options for its “special military operation” - one covering the whole of Ukraine and one focusing on the Donbas. The comments - carried by Russian state news agencies - hinted at a possible downgrading of Russia’s war aims. Russian forces have met strong resistance in the north of Ukraine and around Kyiv.