Disinfo: NATO does not care about Montenegro amid COVID-19 pandemic

Summary

Montenegro requested aid in the form of medical equipment from NATO and the only response it received was an offer for help from the Netherlands. When asked if Montenegro should expect anything else other than the Netherlands’ offer, NATO’s Secretary-General claimed that the alliance already helped the Balkan country. It is clear that NATO is ignoring Montenegro and it is unable to respond to the request for aid.

Disproof

A recurring pro-Kremlin narrative about the failure of the West to respond to the coronavirus thereby abandoning its allies and partners. NATO’s Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response Coordination Centre (EADRC), which received Montenegro’s request for aid on 27 March, is a body set up to “[coordinate] requests for and offers of international assistance from NATO Allies and partner countries.” The Netherlands’ offer to respond to the aid request was, therefore, a part of the NATO mechanism. The first delivery of medical equipment from the Netherlands was transported to Montenegro on 22 April, and a second delivery is expected to be organised in May. Euractiv, an expert and fact-based media network, clarified that “the EADRC is meant to keep track of the assistance offered and accepted by members and partners.” In a response to Montenegro’s request for aid, Jens Stoltenberg said that NATO had already provided some of its capacities, reports CdM. NATO’s Secretary-General also added that he expects an agreement on how the alliance can provide more help during the forthcoming meeting between ministers of foreign affairs. During the meeting, it was agreed that NATO member states will provide additional medical aid for members and partners in a more structured manner using the alliance’s aircraft as a response to COVID-19. The Montenegrin journalist cited in the article, Drazen Zivkovic who alleged that NATO does not care about Montenegro, has a history of reporting fake news on a pro-Serbian news website. He was arrested by the Montenegrin police on 12 January 2020 after publishing fake news about an explosion and causing widespread panic among the public. Zivkovic was also arrested in October 2015 after he clashed with anti-government protesters.

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bgr.news-front.info (Archived)
  • Reported in: Issue 196
  • DATE OF PUBLICATION: 17/04/2020
  • Outlet language(s) Bulgarian
  • Countries and/or Regions discussed in the disinformation: Montenegro
  • Keywords: coronavirus, NATO
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Apr 16, 2020
Disproof

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Apr 16, 2020
Disproof

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Apr 16, 2020
Disproof

Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about Western sanctions on Russia claiming that they have backfired. Since March 2014, the EU has progressively imposed restrictive measures against Russia. The measures were adopted in response to the illegal annexation of Crimea and the deliberate destabilisation of Ukraine.

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