Former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger delivered an anti-war message to Russian citizens and soldiers in a nine-minute video released on social media Thursday morning.
In the video, which was shared on Schwarzenegger’s social media channels, the former governor urges the people of Russia to reject propaganda and disinformation spread by their government regarding the invasion of Ukraine.
The video was dubbed in English and Russian subtitles and was created by media company ATTN:.
“This is an illegal war,” Schwarzenegger pleads to Russian soldiers. “Your lives, your limbs and your futures are being sacrificed for a senseless war condemned by the entire world.”
Schwarzenegger calls the war a “humanitarian crisis” for the people of Ukraine.
In the video, the former governor tells Russian soldiers that they were lied to by their government, which claimed the war was to “denazify Ukraine” and that they would be “greeted like heroes” by Ukrainians.
Schwarzenegger also mentions that Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is Jewish.
“Ukraine is a country with a Jewish president, I might add, whose father’s three brothers were all murdered by the Nazis. You see, Ukraine did not start this war,” Schwarzenegger said.
“See, the world has turned against Russia because of its actions in Ukraine,” he continued. “Whole city blocks have been flattened by Russian artillery and bombs, including a children’s hospital and a maternity hospital.”
Schwarzenegger then calls out Russia President Vladimir Putin and the Kremlin government, asking them, “Why would you sacrifice those young men for your own ambitions?”
“You started this war. You are leading this war. You can stop this war,” the former California governor continued.
He also calls Russian citizens protesting against the war his new “heroes” for suffering the consequences of their “courage” and having the “true heart” of Russia.
The Austrian-born actor spoke about his father’s dark past as a Nazi soldier during World War II. In his address, he mentions a time when his father told him at 14 years old to take down a picture of Russian weightlifter Yuri Vlasov, who Schwarzenegger considers as one of his heroes. He said he hung up the picture of Vlasov above his bed to inspire him as a weightlifter.
Schwarzenegger said his father didn’t like Russians because of the Second World War and that he was injured in battle in Leningrad (now known as St. Petersburg).
“But I did not take the photograph down, no, because it didn’t matter to me what flag Yuri Vlasov carried,” Schwarzenegger said. “It actually deepened when I traveled there with bodybuilding and for my movies and met all my Russian fans. My connections to Russia didn’t stop there, by the way.”
“Now the reason why I’m telling you all of those things is that ever since I was 14 years old, I’ve had nothing but affection and respect for the people of Russia,” he continued. “The strength and the heart of the Russian people have always inspired me. That is why I hope that you will let me tell you the truth about the war in Ukraine and what is happening there.”