Don't Let the Kremlin Fool You, Russia Has a Real Antisemitism Problem

Focusing on the “Anti-Semitic Card,” the report reveals Russia’s well-established strategy of sowing distrust and inciting violence by stoking racial and religious tensions both within Ukraine and internationally.

For over a decade, the Russian propaganda machine has made a concerted effort to consistently channel information through its extensive internal and proxy networks, delivering a false narrative to Russians and the global audience.

This narrative paints Ukraine’s people and leadership as part of a rogue Nazi regime, which, according to the Kremlin, justifies a now three-year-long campaign of violence and eradication, all in the name of “denazification.”

However, their narrative contains several logical contradictions. Ukraine’s elected leaders, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal, are both of Jewish descent. They are at the forefront of the country’s resistance against Russia.

Additionally, Ukraine is home to the fourth-largest Jewish population in Europe. Many Jewish intellectuals and political figures have denounced Russia's full-scale invasion, including Israel’s former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.

These rebuttals have not changed Russia’s rhetoric. Instead, Vladimir Putin and his close associates have only doubled down on their claims in the media, spreading hateful and antisemitic rhetoric that culminated in an actual witch hunt for Jewish people within Russian territory.

Putin’s "godless" and "ethnic Jews" narrative

On December 14, 2024, during the "Year in Review" press conference, Russian leader Vladimir Putin answered Alexandra Suvorova's  question about the ban on the Russian Orthodox Church in Ukraine.

President Zelenskyy signed a law in August 2024 banning Russian-linked religious organizations, like the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC), due to their role in spreading Russian propaganda and supporting the invasion.

Putin lashed out at the ban, calling it a human rights violation and using it to justify Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He specifically targeted Ukraine’s leadership, calling President Zelenskyy and Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal "ethnic Jews" who were responsible for an attack on religious freedom

“But these are not atheists; they are people without any faith at all. They are ethnic Jews, but who has ever seen them in a synagogue?” This is classic antisemitic rhetoric, with Putin using their Jewish identity to discredit them and delegitimize their leadership.

Disgrace to the Jewish people

On June 16, 2023, during a speech at the St. Petersburg Economic Forum, Putin made a wild claim about Zelenskyy. When challenged on how Zelenskyy, a Jewish man, could align with neo-Nazism, Putin responded, “I have many Jewish friends from childhood, they say: ‘Zelenskyy is not a Jew, he is a disgrace to the Jewish people.’”

This offensive comment contradicts the very reasoning behind Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, which he claims is aimed at “denazification.” Despite Ukraine’s fourth-largest Jewish population in Europe and its status as a major site for Jewish pilgrimages, Putin continues to argue that "denazification" is a central goal of Russia’s military campaign. 

Ironically, the leader of Ukraine’s resistance, President Zelenskyy, is Jewish—an undeniable fact that directly challenges the narrative of neo-Nazism Putin tries to impose on the country. The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum released its comment on the matter:

“Since launching its military invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, Russian forces have perpetrated attacks against civilian populations. In justifying this attack, Russian President Vladimir Putin has misrepresented and misappropriated Holocaust history by claiming falsely that democratic Ukraine needs to be ‘denazified.’”

Lavrov on Hitler's “Jewish roots”

Sergey Lavrov’s antisemitic comments came during a May 2022 interview with Italian television, where he was asked about Russia’s justification for the war in Ukraine, particularly the claim that Russia was fighting "Nazis." Lavrov responded by saying, "Hitler was of Jewish descent," and implied that Ukraine’s leadership was made up of neo-Nazis, despite President Zelenskyy’s Jewish heritage.

Lavrov’s remarks were widely condemned as a distortion of history, aimed at justifying Russia’s actions by invoking World War II-era narratives. His claim about Hitler’s supposed Jewish descent has been debunked, and there’s no credible evidence to support it. The suggestion that Ukraine’s leadership is composed of Nazis was seen as an attempt to discredit the government by drawing on harmful stereotypes.

The comments sparked a strong backlash from Jewish communities and leaders worldwide. Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid called them "unforgivable" and "a terrible historical mistake," pointing out the irony of accusing Ukraine of Nazism while Russia itself had been engaging in antisemitic rhetoric. 

Israel's Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, along with other officials, called Lavrov’s comments "absurd" and a distortion of history, with some suggesting they were meant to undermine Ukraine’s legitimacy.

US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, who is Jewish, also condemned Lavrov’s remarks as "deeply offensive" and "outrageous," emphasizing the absurdity of targeting a Jewish leader like Zelenskyy with such claims.

Jewish witchhunt in Dagestan

The Kremlin's antisemitic rhetoric has not only persisted but escalated, culminating in an alarming rise in violence and discrimination against Jews within Russia. One of the most disturbing incidents occurred on October 29, 2023, when a mob stormed Dagestan’s Makhachkala airport and surrounding areas, actively searching for Jewish people. 

Fueled by antisemitic propaganda, the crowd sought to identify and harass Jewish passengers, creating chaos and fear. This unrest was sparked by rumors and false narratives propagated by Russian state media, which portrayed Jews as enemies of the state.

Despite the violent scenes, Russian authorities were slow to respond, with some officials even blaming Ukrainian intelligence for "stirring up" the unrest, thus deflecting responsibility. This attack at the airport was not an isolated event but part of a broader, troubling pattern of rising antisemitism in Russia. 

The Kremlin’s narrative has stoked these sentiments, portraying Jews as the enemy, and creating an environment where such hatred can flourish. This witch hunt at Makhachkala is a direct result of the government’s disinformation campaign, which aims to manipulate public opinion by fueling fear and division while deflecting attention from its actions.