April 30, 2022

Deukrainianization


Deukrainianization
Khrabrovo airport in Kaliningrad, prior to its new paint job. MediaZone

Sandboxes, stadiums, airports, and fences: if it's blue and yellow, it must change. Russian authorities are repainting everything that could be visually associated with Ukraine.

The color changes began back in February, when, on the fourth day of the war, the Kaliningrad Khrabrovo airport changed its website logo from blue and yellow to red and blue. Not long after that, they repainted the logo on the airport's exterior. An airport spokesperson said that the change to the exterior logo was to keep the look cohesive.

A Yekaterinburg shopping center recently followed in Kaliningrad airport's footsteps. The shopping center roof, which was blue and yellow, has recently been removed. According to the center's call center, the paint was chipping anyway, and its removal was part of regular maintenance.

In Yakutsk, a stadium's very Ukrainian-looking seating is being ripped out. The speculation that this is due to its colors is incorrect, or so says the stadium head, who claims that there were only three rows of blue seats and plans to rip them out were created long ago.

It isn't only major businesses that are changing logos and paint jobs. A Pskov resident who traditionally paints her fence yellow and blue every year was forced to change it; sandboxes at a park in a town south of Moscow received complaints and were repainted green; and a woman who works for a translation agency in Yalta was asked to remove her nail polish due to their coloration.

You Might Also Like

Defiant Postage
  • April 27, 2022

Defiant Postage

“It's a symbol of Ukraine, a symbol of our future victory.” – Director of Ukraine's National Post on the new stamp honoring the guards of Snake Island.
Blue and Yellow Lights
  • March 11, 2022

Blue and Yellow Lights

Many famous landmarks across the globe have been illuminated with blue and yellow lights, showing solidarity with Ukraine. 
An NFT to Unite Under
  • March 12, 2022

An NFT to Unite Under

An NFT of the Ukrainian flag raises over $6.7 million for the war against Russia.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

Woe From Wit (bilingual)

Woe From Wit (bilingual)

One of the most famous works of Russian literature, the four-act comedy in verse Woe from Wit skewers staid, nineteenth century Russian society, and it positively teems with “winged phrases” that are essential colloquialisms for students of Russian and Russian culture.
The Little Humpbacked Horse

The Little Humpbacked Horse

A beloved Russian classic about a resourceful Russian peasant, Vanya, and his miracle-working horse, who together undergo various trials, exploits and adventures at the whim of a laughable tsar, told in rich, narrative poetry.
The Latchkey Murders

The Latchkey Murders

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin is back on the case in this prequel to the popular mystery Murder at the Dacha, in which a serial killer is on the loose in Khrushchev’s Moscow...
Jews in Service to the Tsar

Jews in Service to the Tsar

Benjamin Disraeli advised, “Read no history: nothing but biography, for that is life without theory.” With Jews in Service to the Tsar, Lev Berdnikov offers us 28 biographies spanning five centuries of Russian Jewish history, and each portrait opens a new window onto the history of Eastern Europe’s Jews, illuminating dark corners and challenging widely-held conceptions about the role of Jews in Russian history.
A Taste of Russia

A Taste of Russia

The definitive modern cookbook on Russian cuisine has been totally updated and redesigned in a 30th Anniversary Edition. Layering superbly researched recipes with informative essays on the dishes' rich historical and cultural context, A Taste of Russia includes over 200 recipes on everything from borshch to blini, from Salmon Coulibiac to Beef Stew with Rum, from Marinated Mushrooms to Walnut-honey Filled Pies. A Taste of Russia shows off the best that Russian cooking has to offer. Full of great quotes from Russian literature about Russian food and designed in a convenient wide format that stays open during use.
White Magic

White Magic

The thirteen tales in this volume – all written by Russian émigrés, writers who fled their native country in the early twentieth century – contain a fair dose of magic and mysticism, of terror and the supernatural. There are Petersburg revenants, grief-stricken avengers, Lithuanian vampires, flying skeletons, murders and duels, and even a ghostly Edgar Allen Poe.
Steppe / Степь

Steppe / Степь

This is the work that made Chekhov, launching his career as a writer and playwright of national and international renown. Retranslated and updated, this new bilingual edition is a super way to improve your Russian.
At the Circus

At the Circus

This wonderful novella by Alexander Kuprin tells the story of the wrestler Arbuzov and his battle against a renowned American wrestler. Rich in detail and characterization, At the Circus brims with excitement and life. You can smell the sawdust in the big top, see the vivid and colorful characters, sense the tension build as Arbuzov readies to face off against the American.
Bears in the Caviar

Bears in the Caviar

Bears in the Caviar is a hilarious and insightful memoir by a diplomat who was “present at the creation” of US-Soviet relations. Charles Thayer headed off to Russia in 1933, calculating that if he could just learn Russian and be on the spot when the US and USSR established relations, he could make himself indispensable and start a career in the foreign service. Remarkably, he pulled it of.
Survival Russian

Survival Russian

Survival Russian is an intensely practical guide to conversational, colloquial and culture-rich Russian. It uses humor, current events and thematically-driven essays to deepen readers’ understanding of Russian language and culture. This enlarged Second Edition of Survival Russian includes over 90 essays and illuminates over 2000 invaluable Russian phrases and words.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955