DISINFO: Crimean Platform: the West nurtures neo-Nazi mood in Ukraine
SUMMARY
There will be another Witches' Sabbath day, that is, the Crimean Platform, during which the West will continue to nurture the neo-Nazi mood and racism of the modern Ukrainian authorities.
RESPONSE
Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narratives claiming that Nazism in Ukraine is on the rise.
First, the Crimea Platform is aimed at drawing international attention not only to Russia’s illegal annexation of the peninsula, but also to human rights abuses, which Crimean residents have been suffering since 2014. The summit is expected to be held on 23 August 2021 in Kyiv within the framework of this platform, where world leaders will be discussing ways to mobilise a more effective international response to Russia’s seizure of Crimea from Ukraine.
Second, the myth of Nazi-ruled Ukraine has been the cornerstone of Russian disinformation about the country since the very beginning of the 2013-14 Euromaidan protests, when it was used to discredit the pro-European popular uprising in Kyiv and, subsequently, the broader pro-Western shift in Ukraine's foreign policy. Far-right groups enjoyed a very limited presence during the Euromaidan itself and obtained abysmal results in the 2014 presidential and parliamentary elections. During the 2019 election cycle, the far right managed to sustain an even more tremendous failure; the highest-rated nationalist candidate, Ruslan Koshulynskyy, won 1.62% of the vote whereas Svoboda, one of the Kremlin's favourite bogeymen, won 2.16% of the national vote, falling far short of the 5% minimum guaranteeing entry into parliament.
Read similar stories that Crimea, Donbas separated from Ukraine after Nazi coup in Kyiv, Ukrainian army uniforms feature Nazi imagery, Ukraine glorifies Nazism and practises anti-Semitism.