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Disinfo: Minsk will punish Lithuania economically for its support to the Belarusian opposition

Summary

Belarus will reroute cargo from Lithuanian ports to Russia. It needs to be done due to the behaviour of Lithuania in the context of the presidential elections in Belarus. Vilnius began to support ex-candidate Svetlana Tikhanovskaya when officially Alexander Lukashenko won the elections. The Belarusian authorities stated that Lithuania, Poland and other Western countries openly support the Belarusian opposition and want to provoke protests in Belarus. The European Union announced sanctions on Minsk too.

The EU should not use sanctions to scare Belarus because Minsk is ready to answer. I.e., cargo transportation from Belarus forming 30 per cent of the budget of Lithuania.

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The economy of Lithuania will be seriously damaged without Belarusian transit.

Disproof

Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about Lithuania and alleged Western attempts to organise a colour revolution in Belarus. This article also includes a fake statement about the dependence of the Lithuanian economy on Belarus.

According to the European Union, the 2020 Presidential elections in Belarus were neither free nor fair. The protests in Belarus started after the election day as the reaction of society to potential falsification of results. The European Union also does not recognise Aleksandr Lukashenko as the legitimate president of Belarus. The EU sanctions were not just announced but already implemented.

The statement that “30 per cent of the budget of Lithuania” is formed by cargo transit from Belarus is false. Belarus was in 10th position of Lithuania's trade partners. In 2019, the trade with Belarus formed only 3.9 per cent of Lithuanian exports, imports from Belarus were 2.5 per cent.

The accusation that Western countries are interfering in Belarusian affairs is a prominent narrative of pro-Kremlin disinformation. See similar examples here, here and here. In addition, the message about the dependence of the Lithuanian economy on Belarus is also not a new one. See as example: Lukashenka was Lithuania's economic god and benefactor.

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publication/media

Sputnik Lithuania - Russian (Archived)
  • Reported in: Issue 225
  • DATE OF PUBLICATION: 04/01/2021
  • Language/target audience: Russian
  • Country: EU, Russia, Lithuania, Belarus, Poland
  • Keywords: Tikhanouskaya, economy, Protest, Alexander Lukashenko, Sanctions

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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If we follow [Russia’s foreign ministry] activities, we will clearly see how they were never biased towards one party at the expense of another, but rather put the national interest of the peoples of these countries at the top of their priorities; it is always based on respect for state sovereignty, territorial integrity and the right of peoples to self-determination.

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Disproof

A pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about Russia being respectful of international law, and never interfering in other country's affairs. Russia has a long record of violating other states' sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Since 1991, Russia was involved in several international conflicts, including intervention in neighbouring states, such as Georgia in 2008 and Ukraine in 2014. Many international organisations condemned Russian occupation of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, see e.g. the CSCE statement here and the European Parliament's declaration.

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January 04, 2021
Disproof

Contrary to the claim, the Colombian authorities have no doubt about the role of the Russian diplomats expelled from the country on December 8, 2020. Colombian media based their reporting on investigations carried out by the intelligence services of their own country, who provided their results (in Spanish) to some of them, such as El Tiempo and Semana, and even granted them interviews (in Spanish).

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Disproof

A recurrent pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative, part of a disinformation campaign on the coronavirus pandemic.

Contrary to the claim, the West is not promoting Covid-19, much less as part of a so-called Great Reset for population control. New strains of the novel coronavirus are a result of mutations, a regular occurrence for any virus. The affirmation that after receiving an inoculation, people will have to “buy more life” in the same way they now buy licensed software is baseless and contrary to how vaccines actually work.