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Disinfo: Euromaidan coup led to civil war in Donbas

Summary

The civil war in Ukraine has been raging since 2014 when Donetsk and Lugansk declared their independence from Kiev following a violent coup d’etat in the Ukrainian capital.

Disproof

This is a recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative painting the 2013-14 protests in Kyiv as a coup orchestrated by the West, and alleging that Russia's armed aggression in east Ukraine is a civil war.

There was no coup d'état in Ukraine. The spontaneous onset of the Euromaidan protests was an organic reaction by numerous segments of the Ukrainian population to former President Yanukovych’s sudden departure from the promised Association Agreement with the European Union in November 2013. See the full debunk of this disinformation claim here.

The war in eastern Ukraine is not a civil conflict but a well-documented act of aggression by Russian armed forces, ongoing since February 2014.

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publication/media

sputniknews.com (Archived)
  • Reported in: Issue195
  • DATE OF PUBLICATION: 30/04/2020
  • Language/target audience: English
  • Country: Russia, Ukraine
  • Keywords: Donetsk, Eastern Ukraine, Civil war, War in Ukraine, Coup, Donbas, Euromaidan

Disclaimer

Cases in the EUvsDisinfo database focus on messages in the international information space that are identified as providing a partial, distorted, or false depiction of reality and spread key pro-Kremlin messages. This does not necessarily imply, however, that a given outlet is linked to the Kremlin or editorially pro-Kremlin, or that it has intentionally sought to disinform. EUvsDisinfo publications do not represent an official EU position, as the information and opinions expressed are based on media reporting and analysis of the East Stratcom Task Force.

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May 04, 2020
Disproof

The COVID-19 outbreak constituted a serious challenge on Europe's readiness for a crisis. But the claim that "EU has done nothing" is false.

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The US and EU provided modest assistance to Italy, contrary to Russia

Russian military doctors have provided Italy with effective assistance in the fight against coronavirus. This was expected to excite Moscow’s “partners” from NATO structures, because the assistance rendered to Rome by the United States or Europe seemed, to put it mildly, modest.

May 04, 2020
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A recurring pro-Kremlin narrative that the EU left Italy alone to fight coronavirus. The COVID-19 outbreak constituted a serious challenge on Europe's readiness for a crisis and was politically exploited by anti-EU forces, including official Russian media.

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US is rewriting the history of victory in WWII

On the 75th anniversary of the victory, the State Department is making another cynical attempt to rewrite history. America is trying to deny the decisive contribution of the Soviet people in the victory over Nazism.

May 04, 2020
Disproof

Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative on WWII and the West.

The accusation against the US came amid the 75th anniversary of Victory Day after the US Embassy in Hungary announced a competition for "proposals for programmes that foster truthful recognition and remembrance of the tragedies of the Second World War, the Holocaust, and the long road to freedom that followed." What angered pro-Kremlin media is that, amongst others, the proposals should "focus on individual experiences and oral histories... under the tyranny of the Soviet Union".

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DISCLAIMER

Cases in the EUvsDisinfo database focus on messages in the international information space that are identified as providing a partial, distorted, or false depiction of reality and spread key pro-Kremlin messages. This does not necessarily imply, however, that a given outlet is linked to the Kremlin or editorially pro-Kremlin, or that it has intentionally sought to disinform. EUvsDisinfo publications do not represent an official EU position, as the information and opinions expressed are based on media reporting and analysis of the East Stratcom Task Force.