Grigor Atanesian (@atanessi) / X

Grigor Atanesian

7,512 posts

Grigor Atanesian

@atanessi

BBC journalist. Documentary producer 'TraumaZone', 'Anatomy of a Fake Collection'. Fulbrighter.

London, England

Joined August 2013

Pinned
Grigor Atanesian
@atanessi
May 14, 2023
BAFTA
@BAFTA
May 14, 2023
Adam Curtis, Sandra Gorel, Rose Garnett and Grigor Atanesian are awarded the BAFTA for Specialist Factual for their work on Russia 1985-1999: Traumazone 👏 #BAFTATVAwards with @pandocruises
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Grigor Atanesian
@atanessi
Feb 24, 2022
Today, I asked a Russian diplomat how he was doing. "I don't know how to respond to this question," he texted back. "I am disgusted with myself, I am sick with myself. I am ashamed that we all partially let this happen... We all lied... How can there be forgiveness for us?"
Grigor Atanesian
@atanessi
Oct 12, 2022
TraumaZone, a BBC documentary by Adam Curtis on the collapse of communism and democracy in Russia, comes out tomorrow. It is different from Curtis's previous films--there's no voice-over or overarching argument. We started work before the current war; I was a producer for this.
Grigor Atanesian
@atanessi
Mar 19, 2022
A friend here in London told me wherever he goes now, he expects to be judged for being Russian, to be seen as a Russian first and a person second. I told him that's what life's always been in Russia for me and all other non-Slavic Russians. "Hmm I didn't think of that,' he said.
Grigor Atanesian
@atanessi
Apr 14, 2022
What strikes me as odd with Russia's Z letter astroturfing campaign is that nobody knows what Z stands for and nobody cares to explain; the whole country is displaying a symbol void of any meaning, signifier without signified, like in a bad 1990s post-modernist novel.
Grigor Atanesian
@atanessi
Mar 1, 2022
A growing stream of Russians leaving for Armenia as a temporary refuge, fearing a crackdown at home. I know of art curators, designers, McKinsey advisors and PhD students who left for Yerevan, which is rapidly turning into a new Istanbul of the White Russians in 1918.
Grigor Atanesian
@atanessi
Mar 3, 2022
A generational conflict is underway in Russia, with liberal millennials vehemently opposing the war and their TV-watching folks endorsing it. Many stories of parents denouncing their kids, a break in the fabric of society
Grigor Atanesian
@atanessi
Jul 28, 2022
Russia "hasn't stained itself with the bloody crimes of colonialism,” Lavrov wrote in an op-ed previewing his visit to four African nations. This will not stand historical scrutiny: from Siberia to the Caucasus &Ukraine, there was imperial violence. I was on @BBCWorld to discuss.
Grigor Atanesian
@atanessi
Sep 25, 2023
Moscow openly threatening Armenia at the time when it is faced with a refugee crisis caused by total inaction of the Russian peacekeepers in the face of an Azerbaijani military operation
MFA Russia 🇷🇺
@mfa_russia
Sep 25, 2023
⚡️ We are convinced that the Armenian leadership is making a huge mistake by deliberately attempting to sever Armenia's multifaceted and centuries-old ties with Russia, making the country a hostage to Western geopolitical games. Read in full 🔗 is.gd/e1uHCe
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Grigor Atanesian
@atanessi
Oct 29, 2023
At an Azerbaijani friend's wedding last night, I got to meet his parents. They were polite but neutral—until they learnt I was Armenian. To which they reacted like they met a fellow countryman, hugged me and invited to their house. Natural for their generation; a shock for ours.
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Grigor Atanesian
@atanessi
Oct 7, 2020
I had a friend. He was very young and talented. I loved him very much. He was supposed to come visit. Today I learned he was killed in Karabakh.
Grigor Atanesian
@atanessi
May 3, 2025
On the day of local elections in England, I was in Lincolnshire and Yorkshire talking to people from all walks of life. Many are angry and disillusioned. "Too many immigrants in this country," Dave, a construction worker from Wakefield, told me.
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Grigor Atanesian
@atanessi
Jan 24, 2022
Ukraine’s NSC Sec. Danilov tells @BBC_ua he doesn’t expect an imminent invasion and doesn’t share “the panic,” which he connects to “geopolitical and domestic” processes in the West: “The buildup of Russian troops [at the Ukrainian border] isn’t as rapid as some claim”
BBC News Україна
@BBC_ua
Jan 24, 2022
Деякі наші партнери сприяють паніці. Це вигідно Росії - Данілов bbc.in/3Ixb2Xf
Grigor Atanesian
@atanessi
Sep 21, 2024
I have reported on Armenia for a number of years and interviewed top advisors of all its leaders. They were deluded by romantic nationalism. And thought Russia and the West were on their side. But when Azerbaijan attacked, nobody came to their rescue.
The Armenian catastrophe
From unherd.com
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