Microsoft, a technology company, has presented a comprehensive report on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. In this one, much emphasis is placed on comparing that situation with the beginning of the Great War or the First World War. The tech giant has seen many similarities between these events more than 100 years apart.
The cyber attacks, which came from Russia to Ukraine, were compared to the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. The latter event is pointed to as the precipitating event of World War I. An event that ended up shaping much of what was to come in the twentieth century.
Microsoft and an anachronistic parallelism
The report presented by the U.S.-based multinational company makes many allusions and comparisons of the Russian attack on Ukraine with other events of the past. The assassination of the archduke of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, which is pointed to as the beginning of World War I, is seen as similar to what Vladimir Putin did in Eastern Europe.
Brad Smith, president and vice president of Microsoft, noted during the report that “the war in Ukraine follows that pattern.” The 63-year-old lawyer understands that the “first shots” happened before the Russian tanks crossed the border. In a clear parallel with the situation in Sarajevo and the outcome of the Great War in 1914.
As the world’s leading cybersecurity company, Microsoft tracks malicious activity by both criminals and governments. The situation that has been going on for months on Ukrainian soil merited a company report and a somewhat anachronistic parallelism with the events that led to the First World War.
