The “War on Christmas” is apparently real, as a pro-Kremlin mil-blogger released a video on the Telegram social messaging app on Friday that showed Santa Claus being shot down by Russian air defenses while flying over Moscow.
The video was first published by pro-Kremlin Telegram channel Pul N3, with the caption “Santa Claus flies over Russia for the last time.”
It begins with scenes of a traditional holiday celebration before it cuts to show Santa in his customary red suit, carrying several missiles adorned with the NATO logo in his sleigh. With the tune of “We Wish You a Merry Christmas” playing in the background, Santa can also be heard saying in English, “Hi, Russians! Here are your presents,” almost certainly a reference to the Western-supplied missiles and other military hardware that have been sent to aid Ukraine in its nearly three-year-long war with Russia.
As Santa sips on a can of Coca-Cola, the camera zooms out to show an air defense missile streaking towards the sleigh, causing it to explode.
Russia’s Ded Moroz Ordered The Strike
In a truly bizarre turn, the scene shifts to a Russian military control room, where a serviceman is seen seated next to Ded Moroz, the legendary figure who is similar to Saint Nicholas, Father Christmas, and of course Santa Claus.
Also known as Morozko or Grandfather Frost, Ded Moroz remains popular in East Slavic countries and has for centuries been a significant part of Russian culture. While the figure was banned in the early Soviet era, Ded Moroz was later embraced by Soviet officials and used to downplay the emphasis on consumerism and capitalism. In more recent years, Ded Moroz has been promoted by Moscow as part of its efforts to subvert Russia’s ties to the West.
It is not surprising that Russia’s “anti-Santa Claus” ordered Saint Nick to be shot down.
After the missile made an impact, in Russian, Ded Mozoz asked, “Is that it?”
“Yes, the target is destroyed,” the Russian serviceman replied.
“Good. We don’t need anything foreign in our skies. Happy New Year,” Ded Morz said as he embraced the serviceman, who responded, “Same to you! Happy New Year to everyone.”
Santa—A NATO Threat?
The video wasn’t produced by the Kremlin, yet, Ukraine’s Center for Countering Disinformation suggested it still played into Moscow’s narrative that the ongoing conflict in Ukraine is one of NATO’s making.
“Russian paranoia about the ‘NATO threat’ has reached new heights. Russian propagandists have released a ‘social video’ depicting Santa Claus being shot down by Russian air defenses near the Kremlin,” CforCD said in a post on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
Terrible Timing
The timing could not be worse. The video of Santa Claus being shot down by a Russian air-defense missile was released just two days after an Azerbaijan Airlines’ Embraer jet crashed in Kazakhstan on Christmas Day, killing at least 38 of the 67 people on board. The aircraft had attempted to twice land in the city of Grozny, Chechnya, but due to the presence of Ukrainian drones and fog, was diverted to the Aktau airport across the Caspian Sea in Kazakhstan.
U.S. officials told CNN on Thursday that early indications are that a Russian anti-aircraft system may have shot down the passenger jet.
Videos and photographs that have been released to the media suggest the Azerbaijan Airlines plane had damage from shrapnel, but the cause of the holes has not been confirmed. Russia’s Federal Air Transport Agency claimed the plane crashed after colliding with birds.
