Disinfo: Extremists and Nazis are being trained in Ukraine to act in Belarus

Summary

Minsk faces a threat coming from its southern border: Nazi battalions and camps for extremists, who are being trained in Ukraine with the goal of worsening the situation in Belarus. Their purpose is to carry out blunt actions during the weekend demonstrations there. The camps are in the region of Dnipropetrovsk and Volyn.

Disproof

Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative framing popular protests as Western-backed colour revolutions, in this case portraying massive mobilisations in Belarus as a destabilisation effort orchestrated from abroad. No evidence is provided to support the allegations. Despite the unfounded claims about foreign-trained extremist infiltrators, protests in Belarus remained mostly peaceful, with violence coming mainly from the Belarusian police and authorities. See other examples of pro-Kremlin disinformation narratives in Belarus, such as claims that the EU reaction to Lukashenko’s victory is an example of Western double standards; that the same lack of democracy and repression is present in EU countries criticising them in Minsk; that the Ukrainian secret services may have planned terrorist attacks in Belarusian territory; that the West wants to prepare another Maidan in the country; or that Belarusians, Ukrainians and Russians are one single nation. The city of Dnipro changed name from "Dnipropetrovsk" in 2016.

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es.news-front.info (Archived)
  • Reported in: Issue 215
  • DATE OF PUBLICATION: 05/10/2020
  • Outlet language(s) Spanish
  • Countries and/or Regions discussed in the disinformation: Belarus, Ukraine
  • Keywords: Protest, Alexander Lukashenko, Colour revolutions, Nazi/Fascist
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Disinfo: Germany trains Russian and European journalists to create fakes about Russia

The German Association “Potsdam Media International” will train media workers in Russia and Europe in disseminating false information about the Russian Federation, reports the telegram channel “Committee for National Interests”. The editorial office believes that at this course, obviously, media workers will be taught creation of fakes, political provocations and stovepiping. Including directed against Russia.

Oct 04, 2020
Disproof

The claim refers to the conference M100 Sanssouci Colloquium, organized each year, from 2005, in Potsdam, Germany, by Potsdam Media International E.V and many partners. The event brings together Europe's top editors, commentators and media owners alongside key public figures to assess the role and impact of the media in international affairs and to promote democracy and freedom of expression and speech, as it is mentioned on the official web site. This year, the final conference of M100 took place on 17 September. The topic was ”Shaping the Post-Covid Media Order”. There is no thematic mention of Russia on the agenda of the final discussions on September 17, nor in the previous days of training. The claim is false, in line with widespread disinformation narrative on any activities of Western NGOs related to democratic processes and the media, presenting them as actions directed against Russia. See here a case claiming that Anglo-Saxons are at the edge of anti-Russian attack and here a case presenting a media literacy course in Moldovan schools, supported by Western NGO’s, as one aiming to remove Russian information from the media space.

Disinfo: East Germany was attached to the West as a colony

30 years ago, on the 3rd October 1990, West and East Germany united and became one state. This is the official version. In fact it was unfriendly incorporation and East Germany, former GDR betrayed by the Soviet Union attached to the West as a colony.

Oct 04, 2020
Disproof

Historical revisionism and disinformation about the unification of Germany. The downfall of the German Democratic Republic was triggered by the decay of the other communist regimes in eastern Europe and the Soviet Union. After the fall of the Berlin wall, first free multiparty elections took place in East Germany, where a the eastern counterpart of Christian Democratic Union won the majority of votes. The new government began negotiations for a treaty of unification of Germany, amid a surging tide of refugees from East to West. The final barrier to reunification fell in July 1990 when German chancellor Kohl prevailed upon Gorbachev to drop his objections to a unified Germany within the NATO alliance in return for sizable financial aid to the Soviet Union. A unification treaty was ratified by the Bundestag and the People’s Chamber in September and went into effect on October 3, 1990. The German Democratic Republic joined the Federal Republic as five additional Länder (federal states). Read more about the reunification of Germany here. The economic and other differenced between the Eastern and Western parts of Germany still exist, but there is no basis to claim that the Eastern part of the country is colonized by the Western one.

Disinfo: Nagorno-Karabakh conflict leads to more tensions in the Donbas

Ukraine is ready to team up with Azerbaijan and Turkey simply because Turkeys does not recognise Crimea as part of the Russian Federation. The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict has already led to more tensions in the Donbas, including increased military activity. Later, we will certainly see a Ukraine-Turkey alliance against Russia.

Oct 04, 2020
Disproof

Recurring narrative treating Crimea as the territory of the Russian Federation. The narrative also represents a recent trend attempting to connect conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh with Ukraine.

The EU does not recognise the illegal annexation of Crimea and Sevastopol by the Russian Federation and continues to condemn this violation of international law. In June 2020 the European Council decided to renew the sanctions introduced in response to the illegal annexation of Crimea and Sevastopol by the Russian Federation until 23 June 2021. Ukraine did express support for Azerbaijan's territorial integrity, but called for a peaceful solution and said it supports the efforts of Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group - which is co-chaired by the Russian Federation. Based on the daily reports on the OSCE Monitoring Mission to Ukraine, the number of ceasefire violations in the Donbas did not increase meaningfully after the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict escalated. Thus, it cannot be proven that Ukraine, as an answer to the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan, increased pressure on the region.