Disinfo: Europe has always considered Ukraine an anti-Russian project

Summary

Europe has only ever considered Ukraine as an anti-Russian project.

Disproof

This is a recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about Russophobia in Ukraine and Ukraine's statehood. It is a conspiracy theory without any evidence. Ukraine is recognised in international law as a sovereign nation-state, with its own flag, nationality, language and with a democratically-elected president and parliament. The EU and the US support the democratic development of Ukraine in accordance with the UN Charter’s principles of non-interference into internal affairs and respect towards territorial integrity and political independence. Ukraine is not an anti-Russian project. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Ukraine and Russia established diplomatic relations and signed a number of important treaties. On 31 May 1997, the countries signed a comprehensive Friendship Treaty. As a result, Russia recognised Ukrainian sovereignty and territorial integrity. It also recognised that Crimea belongs to Ukraine. Read similar cases: Ukraine wants to preserve itself as an anti-Russian project, Ukraine is an anti-Russian project of the CIA.

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politnavigator.net (Archived)
  • Reported in: Issue 205
  • DATE OF PUBLICATION: 13/07/2020
  • Outlet language(s) Russian
  • Countries and/or Regions discussed in the disinformation: EU, Ukraine, Russia
  • Keywords: Anti-Russian, European Union, Europe, Russophobia
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Disinfo: There was a coup d' etat in Ukraine in 2014

Russian President Vladimir Putin said that the events in Crimea in 2014 were not the main reason for the deterioration in relations between Moscow and Washington. As he noted, there was first a coup d’ etat in Ukraine and a seizure of power. From that moment on, the views and the relations between Russia and the new Ukrainian leadership became diametrically opposed. Then, the United States under President Barack Obama imposed sanctions on Moscow after the events concerning the annexation of Crimea and bilateral relations worsened sharply.

Jul 12, 2020
Disproof

Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative painting the 2013-14 Ukrainian revolution as a coup d'etat which led Crimean citizens to rejoin Russia through a legal referendum. However, there was no coup d' etat in Ukraine. The spontaneous onset of the Euromaidan protests was a reaction by numerous parts of the Ukrainian population to former President Yanukovych’s sudden departure from the promised Association Agreement with the European Union in November 2013. On 26 February 2014, the Russian Federation deployed members of its armed forces to gain control over parts of the Ukrainian territory without the consent of the Ukrainian Government. The next day a referendum was announced and a vote was held on March 16, 2014, in the Peninsula of Crimea. The territory was then controlled by Russian forces, though neither Ukrainian nor Russian election code was observed. On 27 March 2014, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution in which it stated that the referendum in Crimea was not valid and could not serve as a basis for any change in the status of the peninsula. On 17 December 2018, the UN General Assembly confirmed its non-recognition of the illegal annexation of Crimea. Read more similar cases alleging that the extreme coup in Kyiv led to the return of Crimea and that Euromaidan was a coup d’état carried out by oligarchs.

Disinfo: Crimea's return to Russia is not the reason for bad Russian-Ukrainian relations

A coup and a seizure of power took place in Ukraine, and only after that, and from that moment onwards, Russian views and methods became completely contradictory to the Ukrainian leadership . After that, Crimea returned to Russia, not the other way around. Therefore, the deterioration of Russian relations with Ukraine has nothing to do with Crimea.

Jul 12, 2020
Disproof

There was no coup d’état in Kyiv in 2014; this is a longstanding pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about Ukraine's Euromaidan protests. The spontaneous onset of the Euromaidan protests was a reaction from several segments of the Ukrainian population to former President Yanukovych’s sudden departure from the promised Association Agreement with the European Union in November 2013, as a result of pressure from Russia. The article also contains a recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative on the annexation of Crimea claiming that Crimea has "returned" to Russia. The transfer of Crimea and Sevastopol to Ukraine was first officially agreed on 25 January 1954 at a meeting of the Presidium of the CPSU Central Committee. The members of the Presidium, voting for the transfer of Crimea to Ukraine, took into account objective reasons: “the commonality of the economy, territorial proximity and close economic and cultural ties between the Crimean region and the Ukrainian SSR.” On 19 February 1954, the Supreme Soviet of the USSR confirmed the need for Crimea to join Soviet Ukraine. Legally, the transfer of Crimea to Ukraine ended on 26 April 1954, on the basis of the relevant law of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR. According to international law, Crimea is a part of Ukraine. After the collapse of the USSR, Russia reaffirmed respect for the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine. By signing the 1997 Friendship Treaty, Russia also recognised that Crimea is an integral part of Ukraine. The Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court has stated that “the situation within the territory of Crimea and Sevastopol amounts to an international armed conflict between Ukraine and the Russian Federation. This international armed conflict began at the latest on 26 February 2014 when the Russian Federation deployed members of its armed forces to gain control over parts of Ukrainian territory without the consent of the Ukrainian Government". Read similar cases claiming that Crimean people have expressed their desire to rejoin Russia in a democratic process and that Crimea never belonged to Ukraine.

Disinfo: Kyiv did nothing to implement Minsk agreements

Kyiv has not done anything to implement the Minsk procedures and the Paris Agreements … to settle the situation in Donbas.

Jul 12, 2020
Disproof

Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about the war in Ukraine, claiming that Ukraine refuses to implement the Minsk agreements.

Ukraine has never claimed that it does not want to implement the Minsk agreements. The implementation of the agreements remains one of the key priorities of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. After the COVID-19 pandemic began, the Ukrainian side proposed to hold the negotiations conducted by the Trilateral Contact Group in a video format.