Got into a conversation with someone today and I mentioned the Soviets liberated a lot of Nazi camps. They looked at me like I was evil and said "Well they're bombing innocent people today and accusing them of being Nazis"
I said that while I'm not a fan of modern Russia, the Azov Battalion is in fact Nazi, and Ukraine has had a Nazi problem for a while.
They didn't know who Azov are and just said "Well they're probably all gone now. They're just bombing innocent people."
I'm sick of people thinking I'm some kind of evil modern Russian oligarchy stan or crazy conspiracy theorist just because I acknowledge the fact that Nazis exist and are a big problem. If Ukraine wins, those strengthened Nazi groups that are supported by western aid and the Ukraine government are going to go full fascist.
I just say something about how the US has a rich history of "getting into bed with bad guys"/supporting regional extremist organizations to destabilize governments opposed to US financial interests and that we have been shown not to care at all about what those groups stand for or what they do about human rights when they take power, so long as they continue to serve our financial interests.
that opens up the dialogue to all the US military actions in recent history to deal with the blowback from such a blanket policy, and the regimes we sell assist/support with abysmal human rights records.
to me the value is not in demonstrating today's crime, but the institutional policy behind it. the idea that the US supports actual Nazis is hard to swallow for the ignorant and they have been primed to reject it by daily media.
it's much easier to get people to see Iraq/Afghanistan in this context, or Saudi Arabia or wherever you want to take it (LatAm, Plan Columbia, Chile) pointing out the media support and PR for those actions and actors. then you can circle back to Ukraine and say, "doesn't it seem possible, if not likely that nothing has fundamentally changed?"
Yeah I usually say "Yes because the US arming and funding right-wing militias always works out great for everyone. Let's thank the brave Mujahadeen freedom fighters for taking on the Soviets, no way that backfired." If they actually are interested in having a conversation, Azov and Right Sector ignored the Minsk II protocols (including ignoring direct commands from President Zelenksy) and have spent 8 years killing civilians in the Donbas. 80% of ceasefire violations came from Ukraine with similar figures for casualties.