Disgraced CNN anchor resurfaces in Ukraine
Chris Cuomo, who was fired from CNN last December after revelations that he improperly helped his brother Andrew, the former New York governor, fend off accusations of sexual harassment, posted several videos from Ukraine on Monday. He referred to himself as a free agent reporting from the frontline.
“What is happening right now in Ukraine is bad and America should be paying a lot more attention,” he wrote in an Instagram post that included the footage. He said the videos “should be all over your screens.”
Cuomo, seen in one of the videos wearing a helmet and aviator sunglasses against the backdrop of damaged buildings and accompanying Ukrainian soldiers, stated that there was not enough coverage of the conflict “here.” He used the hashtags #FreeAgent and #FreeAgentCC to seemingly claim that his reporting is independent.
Another video showcased what appeared to be the US-made HIMARS multiple rocket launcher. Washington has supplied several such systems to Ukraine in the fight against Russia. The former CNN anchor compared Ukraine’s struggle against Russia with the American colonists’ war for independence in 1776 against their British overlords.
In late June, Cuomo broke a seven-month hiatus from Instagram – after being fired from CNN – to post images from Ukraine. Those included the aftermath of what he claimed to be Russian attacks on civilian targets, an interview with a Ukrainian fighter, and a picture of himself with a worried expression on his face. He also offered the teaser that “something is coming” in the summer of 2022.
Another US TV personality, Malcolm Nance, embarked on a similar path to the battlefields of Ukraine. In April, the MSNBC host announced his resignation from the station and enrolled in the ranks of Ukrainian forces.
“I’m done talking,” he declared in an interview with his former co-worker, Joy Reid, during which he wore a uniform and held a rifle across his chest.
Russia sent troops into Ukraine on February 24, citing Kiev’s failure to implement the Minsk agreements, designed to give the regions of Donetsk and Lugansk special status within the Ukrainian state. The protocols, brokered by Germany and France, were first signed in 2014. Former Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has since admitted that Kiev’s main goal was to use the ceasefire to buy time and “create powerful armed forces.”
In February 2022, the Kremlin recognized the Donbass republics as independent states and demanded that Ukraine officially declare itself a neutral country that will never join any Western military bloc. Kiev insists the Russian offensive was completely unprovoked.
