Disinfo: Joe Biden was personally profiteering in Ukraine

Summary

Joe Biden was personally profiteering in Ukraine. Not only his son, Hunter Biden, who has fictitiously worked for Burisma company in Ukraine receiving enormous amounts of money for nothing, but also Biden himself [got] a million dollars for his family for consultations. The purpose of this consultation was actually to pressure then-president Poroshenko so that he would fire the prosecutor-general Victor Shokin, who was investigating the corruption of the Biden family – the father Joe and son Hunter, who were unlawfully helping themselves in Ukraine. For the firing of inconvenient Shokin, the US vice president promised Poroshenko one billion dollars which could be used by Poroshenko’s companies that received military contracts. […] It is a story of international corruption and high treason.

Disproof

This is a recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about Joe Biden and Hunter Biden. The disinformation message appeared after the leak of the audio tapes containing edited fragments of a conversation between former US Vice President Joe Biden and former president of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko. There is no basis for the claims that Joe Biden personally profited in Ukraine. As a former US vice president, he was responsible for US policy towards Ukraine. Extensive journalistic investigations by multiple international media outlets reveal that Ukraine faced broad international and domestic pressure to advance anti-corruption reforms and that Ukraine's international partners were concerned about Ukraine's prosecutor-general at the time, who was reputed to not follow up on corruption issues. See relevant reporting by the Financial Times, RFERL, and Washington Post among others. In 2018, Joe Biden himself publicly spoke about conversations with President Poroshenko regarding Ukraine's prosecutor-general. The mentioned sum of one billion dollars was not a personal payment, but rather the amount of US loan guarantees to Ukraine. There is no evidence to support the claims that international corruption or high treason occurred in this case. Hunter Biden served on the board of one of the largest natural gas companies in Ukraine. Hostility towards the Biden family has been a consistent feature of pro-Kremlin disinformation. See other examples, such as false allegations of Hunter's "dubious" business in Kyiv, Joe Biden's vow to prevent Vladimir Putin's reelection, his rule over Ukraine, and his intimate involvement in the war in Donbas and in Georgian unrest.

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Rossia 24 (Archived)
  • Reported in: Issue 198
  • DATE OF PUBLICATION: 24/05/2020
  • Outlet language(s) Russian
  • Countries and/or Regions discussed in the disinformation: US, Ukraine
  • Keywords: Ukraine, Hunter Biden, Joe Biden, Corruption, Petro Poroshenko
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Disinfo: US trained in the skies over Norway and Sweden, to attack Russia

The United States used the airspace of Norway and Sweden to simulate strikes in Russia with B-1B Lancer bombers. According to the Telegram channel “Svarshchiki”, Norway and Sweden made their airspace available for aggressive (offensive) operations against Russia with strategic bombers of the US Air Force B-1B Lancer on May 20, 2020. The United States even petted the head of the complaining Swedish leadership (not part of NATO) because it allowed its country to come into conflict with Russia solely in the interests of the United States (to the detriment of its population, economy and security). Sweden has accompanied strategists with Gripen fighters and Norway with F-35 planes.

May 23, 2020
Disproof

New adaptation of a recurrent pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative on western militaries or NATO encircling and trying to attack Russia.

On 20 May 2020, US strategic B-1B bombers were in joint training with Norwegian and Swedish fighter jets, exercising in the airspace over both Norway and Sweden. Two B-1B Lancers from the 28th Bomb Wing in Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota, conducted a long-range strategic bomber task force mission to the Nordic region on 20 May 2020. The bombers visited Norwegian airspace, where they integrated and trained with four Norwegian F-35s. For Norway, the U.S. mission provided an important training opportunity. These training exercises were not targeted at Russia, nor were these jets training to target Russia as claimed.

Disinfo: In The Hague, there is no case against Russia related to Ukraine

It is unclear to which case against Russia in the court in The Hague the materials from the interviews with Girkin and Poklonskaya can be attached. In The Hague, there is no case against Russia in relation to Ukraine.

May 23, 2020
Disproof

Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about the lawsuit trial between Ukraine and Russia at the International Court of Justice in Hague. Read a similar case, claiming that Ukraine’s lawsuit against Russia is groundless. Ukraine has filed a complaint against Russia to the International Court of Justice in Hague on 17 January 2017, concerning the events in separatist areas of Ukraine, Donetsk and Lugansk, including the downing of the MH17 Malaysian plane in July 2014. Ukraine invoked the violation of the International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism and the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD). Ukraine requested the Court ”to adjudge and declare that the Russian Federation bears international responsibility, by virtue of its sponsorship of terrorism and failure to prevent the financing of terrorism under the Convention, for the acts of terrorism committed by its proxies in Ukraine”, and ”to adjudge and declare that the Russian Federation, through its State organs, State agents, and other persons and entities exercising governmental authority, including the de facto authorities administering the illegal Russian occupation of Crimea, and through other agents acting on its instructions or under its direction and control, has violated its obligations under the CERD”. See details here. On 8 November 2019, the Court fixed the time-limit for Russian Federation to present the counter-memorial in this trial. In the same Judgment, the Court rejected the preliminary objection raised by the Russian Federation to the admissibility of the Application of Ukraine in relation to the claims under CERD. Thus, the UN Court will consider the case. The lawsuit was filed at the International Court of Justice by the then President of Ukraine, Petro Poroshenko, in early 2017.

Disinfo: US organises colour revolutions around the world, Ukraine is one of the projects

The US brings chaos and organises colour revolutions around the world simply because it can, and there is no court or institution which can legally oppose it. Ukraine is one of the US’ projects.

May 23, 2020
Disproof

Pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative claiming that the United States supports the so-called "colour revolutions" around the world. This narrative portrays any spontaneous disorders and civil uprisings in other states, especially the former Soviet republics, as Western-funded "colour revolutions", including the Revolution of Dignity (Euromaidan) in Ukraine, which began in 2013 without any outside influence. Ukrainians spontaneously united against the actions of President Viktor Yanukovych after his government refused to sign the Association Agreement with the European Union, which had taken seven years to negotiate, due to pressure from Russia. Ukraine is an independent state whose sovereignty is respected both in the EU and in the USA. Washington is working closely with Ukraine, directing its assistance to support the development of a safe, democratic, prosperous and free Ukraine, fully integrated into the Euro-Atlantic community. See the similar case: The US tried to organise a colour revolution in Belarus against Russia.