Disinfo: In 2014 coup Kyiv government carried out a war against its own people

Summary

We advise all responsible countries with which we are in contact (Turkey is one of them) to analyse the situation and Kyiv's ongoing bellicose statements. We warn them not to feed this militaristic mood. It is no secret that already in 2014 the new Kyiv government - the coup plotters - emboldened by the anti-constitutional coup, carried out an act of aggression against their own people. When officials of the Zelenskyy government say that Kyiv is not planning anything in the Donbas because it cannot fight its own people, they are not telling the truth. After the 'Revolution of Dignity', which was in fact an unconstitutional coup, Kyiv attacked its own people and has since waged a war against them, declaring its own citizens terrorists.

Disproof

Two interconnected recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narratives are used in this piece. One about the war in Ukraine, claiming that Russia is not part of the conflict in Donbas, that Russia has nothing to do with the war in eastern Ukraine and presenting the conflict as a “civil war”, a war against its own people in Donbas. The other is about an alleged anti-constitutional coup in Ukraine in 2014; this is a longstanding pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about Ukraine's Euromaidan protests.

On the coup: 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, after pressure from Russia. See the full debunk: The Western-backed coup in Ukraine has torn the country asunder.

On Russia ‘role within the war in Ukraine: The European Union stated in July 2014 that "arms and fighters continue flowing into Ukraine from the Russian Federation". At the NATO Summit in Wales in September 2014, NATO leaders condemned in the strongest terms Russia’s military intervention in Ukraine and demanded Russia to stop and withdraw its forces from Ukraine and from the country’s border. NATO leaders also demanded Russia comply with international law and its international obligations and responsibilities; refrain from aggressive actions against Ukraine; halt the flow of weapons, equipment, people and money across the border to the separatists; and stop fomenting tension along and across the Ukrainian border.

In 2015, Russian President Vladimir Putin admitted Russia's military presence in Ukraine.

See similar disinformation cases alleging that Donbas rebelled because Russians in Ukraine were subjected to ethnocide, that after Euromaidan Ukraine lost its sovereignty and is falling apart, that the Euromaidan coup led to civil war in Donbas, or that Ukraine committed a crime by attacking its citizens in Donbas in 2014.

publication/media

  • Reported in: Issue 235
  • DATE OF PUBLICATION: 14/04/2021
  • Article language(s) German
  • Countries and/or Regions discussed in the disinformation: Ukraine, Russia
  • Keywords: War in Ukraine, Euromaidan, Coup
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Disinfo: Soros sponsors colour revolutions, revolts and coups d’état against the enemies of the Open Society

George Soros sponsors colour revolutions, revolts and coups d’ètat to strike at the enemies of the Open Society. His Open Society foundation is a cover for a global network that wants to subvert and control politics on a global scale.

Disproof

Conspiracy theory based on a recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about the philanthropist George Soros, presenting him as a person who aims to control political systems in many countries, by funding what they claim to be colour revolutions around the world.

George Soros is often targeted by the pro-Kremlin media with multiple conspiracy theories and disinformation, aiming to accuse him without evidence of destabilising governmentsattacking churches or actively conspiring on various fronts globally.

Disinfo: A violent coup d’état took place in Ukraine in 2014

A violent coup d’état, supported by the West and by nationalist groups, took place in Ukraine in 2014. Donetsk and Luhansk proclaimed independence because they feared repression against the Russian speaking population, which is a majority in these areas.

Disproof

This is a recurring pro-Kremlin narrative about Euromaidan and the war in Ukraine .

The peaceful protests, which broke out in Kyiv beginning is late 2013, were a spontaneous popular uprising in response to a change in the policies of the then government led by Viktor Yanukovych.

Disinfo: The US and their NATO allies are turning Ukraine into a "powder keg"

The (military) deliveries went on, they continue. The volume of this aid is increasing. The US and other NATO countries are deliberately turning Ukraine into a "powder keg." For many years on the territory of Ukraine training events have been taking place with the participation of advisers, instructors, dozens and hundreds of those working at different training grounds, and objects are being created that have a direct and negative relation to the security of Russia.

Disproof

This is a recurring disinformation narrative that claims the West is providing military assistance to Ukraine to prepare for a war with Russia. It is also an attempt to divert attention from Russian actions and large movements of Russian military forces near the Ukrainian border. Both the US and NATO have described Moscow's military deployment on along the border as larger than at any point since 2014.

There is no presence of NATO or US forces in the Donbas war zone. NATO experts, who are stationed in Ukraine, for instance, help the country's Armed Forces with the military reform. Sometimes NATO troops engage in joint military exercises with the Ukrainian military.