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https://nordictimes.com/world/nafo-a-harassment-network-in-the-service-of-the-ukrainian-war-machine/

World

NAFO – A harassment network in the service of the Ukrainian war machine

The war in Ukraine

Published 15 July 2023
– By Editorial Staff
A "fella" adorns a destroyed Russian tank on display in front of the Russian Embassy in Berlin.
3 minute read
Editorial Staff
editorial@nordictimes.com

The online activist group NAFO was formed to counter “Russian propaganda” on the Internet and to raise money for the Ukrainian war machine.

More recently, the group’s members – known as “fellas” – have been accused of increasingly engaging in outright harassment of those who do not share their views on the righteousness and military superiority of the Ukrainian regime.

According to the movement’s founder, Polish national Kamil Dyszewski, the movement was created more or less by accident last May. Since then, the movement has grown explosively, or as the term is used in such contexts – virally.

– The first “fella” was made on May 19…Somebody called us the new NATO or something like that and I just replied with ‘NAFO’. Then I just took the NATO badge, changed NATO to NAFO and added a head of a ‘fella’ peeking out. And there we are.

The abbreviation NAFO stands for North Atlantic Fella Organization, and a “fella” refers to a Shiba Inu dog, known in internet meme culture as a doge, and made famous in connection with the cryptocurrency Dogecoin. The bottom line is that ordinary “dudes” or “dudettes” can help support the war in Ukraine without leaving the comfort of their homes, computers, and cell phones.

War Propaganda Meets Internet Culture

Its members create cleverly edited images and videos to convey the idea of the invincibility of the Ukrainian army, the inevitability of Russian defeat, or otherwise support the Ukrainian war machine in particular and NATO in general.

 

Below is one of the movement’s members’ contributions, illustrating how the chivalrous and mighty Ukrainian forces easily destroy the advancing “hordes of Russian orcs” with rockets and magic.

 

 

The focus on the ongoing war does not prevent this ‘fella’ from allusions to other political issues.

 

 

On its Twitter channel, the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense officially thanked the organization for its fight against “Kremlin propaganda and trolls”.

 

 

On its official website, NAFO sells merchandise in the form of clothing and accessories to raise money for the Ukrainian war machine.

According to various reports, they have managed to raise and donate anywhere from $50,000 to $400,000 to the Georgian Legion, which confirms in a tweet that the “Fellas” are “big supporters of them”.

 

A Harassment Network

Recently, the organization has been accused of increasingly engaging in outright online harassment of dissenters in addition to its “core” activities.

Organized through the Discord chat platform, members use memes and posts to launch mass attacks on Twitter. By sending large numbers of provocative tweets against people who do not share their views, they try to provoke responses that violate Twitter’s rules and can therefore be reported and lead to suspension.

As the group has attracted more American participants from left-wing backgrounds, their targets have shifted to include mainstream conservatives or MAGA supporters, as well as prominent figures such as Tulsi Gabbard and Tucker Carlson.

Despite allegations of harassment, Twitter has yet to take action against NAFO. Critics say the group’s activities undermine trust in Twitter’s reporting system, create a hostile user experience, and chill free speech.

Editorial Staff
editorial@nordictimes.com

Facts: The Doge Meme

"Doge" is an intentional misspelling of the word "dog" and is most commonly associated with images of the Shiba Inu dog breed.

The origin of the term "Doge" to refer to a dog dates back to June 24, 2005, when the word was first uttered in an episode of Homestar Runners. In the episode "Biz Cas Fri 1", Homestar calls Strong Bad his "d-o-g-e" while trying to distract him from his work.

The most prominent icon of the doge meme is the photos of Shiba Inu dog Kabosu taken by its owner, Japanese preschool teacher Atsuko Sato, in early 2010. The images quickly went viral, leading to countless memes and trends in the decades that followed.

Starting in 2017, ironic doge formats began to take over from the original, innocent version, a trend that continues to evolve.

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https://nordictimes.com/world/ukraines-parliament-passes-law-undermining-anti-corruption-efforts/

World

Ukraine’s parliament passes law undermining anti-corruption efforts

The war in Ukraine

Published yesterday 8:43
– By Editorial Staff
SAPO chief Oleksandr Klymenko (left) and NABU director Semen Kryvonos during a press conference in Kyiv after the parliament approved a bill that abolishes the independence of the two agencies.
2 minute read
Editorial Staff
editorial@nordictimes.com

Ukraine’s parliament adopted legislative amendments on Monday that severely limit the independence of the country’s two central anti-corruption agencies. The opposition and monitoring organizations warn that the reform “destroys” the agencies’ autonomy.

Parliament voted through legislative changes that give the prosecutor general new extensive powers over investigations led by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO). The law was adopted with support from 263 parliamentarians, while 13 voted against and 13 abstained, writes The Kyiv Independent.

The legislative amendment still requires Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s signature to take effect, and the president has the option to veto it.

New powers draw criticism

Under the new law, the prosecutor general gains the authority to issue directives for NABU’s investigations or even transfer them to other agencies. The prosecutor general can also delegate SAPO’s powers to other prosecutors and close NABU investigations at the request of the judicial system.

The agencies themselves have reacted strongly to the changes. NABU announced in a statement that the amendments mean “destruction of NABU and SAPO’s independence and practically subordinate their activities to the prosecutor general”.

— This is effectively the end of the work of two independent institutions, said Oleksandr Klymenko, head of SAPO, during a press conference after the vote.

NABU’s director, Semen Kryvonos, condemned the legislation and argued that it threatens Ukraine’s Euro-Atlantic integration. He also expressed hope that Zelensky would veto the law.

Just one day before the vote, several law enforcement agencies, including the prosecutor general’s office and the security service SBU, conducted extensive searches at NABU and SAPO. Fifteen NABU employees are being investigated for various crimes, from traffic violations to espionage.

Concerns over aid accountability

While anti-corruption efforts face pressure, questions have been raised about accountability for the extensive Western aid to Ukraine. Since February 2024, the West has provided approximately $314 billion in support, with the Pentagon acknowledging that over $1 billion in advanced weapons systems cannot be properly tracked – though without evidence of theft, but rather due to inadequate tracking systems under wartime conditions.

The most documented corruption case to date linked to Ukraine involves Poland, where the EU’s anti-fraud office, OLAF, discovered irregularities worth €91 million in a generator project for Ukraine. Within Ukraine itself, the security service revealed in January 2024 a corruption scandal worth $40 million where the defense ministry paid for shells that were never delivered.

International monitoring organizations maintain that various control mechanisms have been established, but developments regarding NABU and SAPO now raise concerns that future aid could be affected by weakened anti-corruption efforts.

Editorial Staff
editorial@nordictimes.com

https://nordictimes.com/world/russian-drone-swarms-break-through-ukrainian-air-defenses-at-record-pace/

World

Russian drone swarms break through Ukrainian air defenses at record pace

The war in Ukraine

Published 22 July 2025
– By Editorial Staff
A Russian Geran drone strikes a building in Kiev, Ukraine in June.
2 minute read
Editorial Staff
editorial@nordictimes.com

Russia’s mass drone attacks are becoming increasingly successful. Hit rates have tripled during spring while Ukrainian defenses are overwhelmed by new swarm tactics and modified drones.

Russia’s intensified drone attacks against Ukraine are becoming increasingly successful, with drones hitting their targets in three times as many cases as before, according to official data from the Ukrainian air force.

Mass attacks with Shahed drones, originally of Iranian design but now manufactured in Russia, appear to be overwhelming Ukraine’s severely strained air defenses. According to data from the Ukrainian air force, an average of about 15 percent of the drones penetrated defense lines between April and June – a sharp increase from 5 percent during the previous three months.

During the night leading to Monday, Russia conducted an extensive attack with 426 Shahed drones. On July 9, a record attack was seen with 728 drones and decoy drones, as well as several cruise missiles.

New tactics overwhelm defenses

Russia’s tactical innovations have included modifications that allow the drones to fly faster and at higher altitudes, beyond the range of the truck-mounted machine guns that Ukraine typically uses.

— The problem is not that the Ukraine air defense is getting worse. Instead, what we see is that new swarming tactics and drones are now flying in higher altitude, which makes them more effective, says Yasir Atalan from the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Russia has named its modified drones Geran, which means geranium in Russian. Geran-3, a turbine-powered variant that can fly up to 800 kilometers per hour, has been used against Kiev in recent weeks.

Ukraine develops countermeasures

President Volodymyr Zelensky said on July 10 that Ukraine is “already shooting down dozens of Shahed drones” with its domestically manufactured interceptor drones. Earlier in the month, he announced an agreement with the American company Swift Beat to co-produce hundreds of thousands of drones.

— Our air defense forces are achieving good results with the new interceptor drones and they are performing particularly well, having shot down hundreds of Russian-Iranian Shaheds in a week, Zelenskyy said last week.

Andrew Turner, former air marshal in the Royal Air Force, describes the development as typical of air warfare:

— It’s a constant duel and evolution between countermeasures against countermeasures against countermeasures. In Ukraine, this movement happens every 14 days, so it moves at great speed.

Editorial Staff
editorial@nordictimes.com

https://nordictimes.com/europe/hungary-wants-eu-sanctions-on-ukrainian-forced-conscription-officers/

Europe

Hungary wants EU sanctions on Ukrainian forced conscription officers

The war in Ukraine

Published 16 July 2025
– By Editorial Staff
Hungarian Foreign Minister demands that those responsible must be held accountable for the murder and brutal assault of people who refused to go to war.
1 minute read
Editorial Staff
editorial@nordictimes.com

Following the Council of Europe report, the brutality surrounding forced recruitment patrols in Ukraine must be covered by EU human rights sanctions. This is the view of Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó.

Referring to the Council of Europe report titled Memorandum on human rights elements for peace in Ukraine, dated July 8, 2025 and signed by the EU Commissioner for Human Rights, Michael O’Flaherty, Szijjártó points out that conscription in Ukraine involves murder, torture, brutal assault and brutal treatment.

— It is a fact that people are dying in Ukraine because of the brutality of the conscription officers, because they don’t want to go to war.

— Where are the NGOs, where are the Soros organizations, where are the so-called independent journalists, where are the human rights organizations, why do they not speak out and say that this manhunt on the streets of Ukraine is unacceptable? asks Péter Szijjártó.

Szijjártó emphasizes that they view it as unacceptable and “shocking” that European politicians remain indifferent to the brutality and stresses that they demand the responsible recruiters be placed on the EU’s human rights sanctions list.

— This is a bare minimum that the EU must do in this issue, he emphasizes.

Editorial Staff
editorial@nordictimes.com

https://nordictimes.com/world/trump-urges-zelensky-to-attack-moscow/

World

Trump urges Zelensky to attack Moscow

The war in Ukraine

Published 16 July 2025
– By Editorial Staff
2 minute read
Editorial Staff
editorial@nordictimes.com

Donald Trump has secretly urged Ukraine to carry out attacks against the Russian major cities of Moscow and St. Petersburg – as a strategy to force Russia to the negotiating table, according to the Financial Times.

The conversation reportedly took place on July 4 between American and Ukrainian representatives, where Trump posed direct questions to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky:

– Volodymyr, can you hit Moscow? . . . Can you hit St Petersburg too?

According to the newspaper’s sources, the plan is to make Russia “feel pain” in order to pressure a settlement. Trump has previously expressed frustration over the war’s duration and said:

– I’m disappointed in President Putin because I thought we would have had a deal two months ago.

At the same time, it is reported that Zelensky has received a list of long-range weapons that Trump wants to deliver through intermediaries – to circumvent Congress’s ban on direct military aid.

Escalation in the war

The revelations come at a sensitive time. The Kremlin has repeatedly warned that Russia could strike against the West if its weapons are used against Russian territory.

President Vladimir Putin has claimed that Russia has the right to “use our weapons against military facilities in countries that allow their weapons to be used against our facilities”.

In November 2024, Russia tightened its nuclear doctrine, which now allows nuclear response if Russia is attacked with conventional weapons by “non-nuclear states supported by nuclear powers”.

So far, Ukraine has primarily used domestically produced long-range drones in its attacks inside Russia. Neither the White House nor the Ukrainian government has commented on the revelation.

Editorial Staff
editorial@nordictimes.com

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