Disinfo: Poland has made Russophobia a cornerstone of its policies

Summary

The current Polish authorities have made Russophobia one of the cornerstones of their policies, constantly speaking about the ‘Russian threat’ and trying to portray their country as a victim of both Nazi Germany and the USSR in World War II.

Disproof

Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative equating criticism of Russia's actions with an irrational hatred of Russia itself; attempting to distort the events of the Second World War and rewrite its history in a way that is favourable to Russia.

The Nazi-Soviet occupation of Poland is a matter of historical record, not of portrayal. The invasion was coordinated on the basis of the the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, which was accompanied by a secret supplementary protocol on the delimitation of areas of mutual interest in Eastern Europe. A separate provision of the protocol entitled the Nazi Germany and the USSR to jointly conduct a "territorial-political reorganisation" of Poland, and to determine "whether it is in the (signatories') mutual interest to preserve the independent Polish State."

See similar cases about the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact here, here, here, here and here.

publication/media

RT English (Archived)

Reported in: Issue189
DATE OF PUBLICATION: 18/03/2020
Language/target audience: English
Country: Russia, Poland
Keywords: Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, USSR, Anti-Russian, Historical revisionism, WWII, Russophobia, Nazi/Fascist

The French government systematically lied to the population

In France for 50-60 years when there were health crises, the government lied to society. When Chernobyl happened in 1984, the German authorities told to be careful and to protect oneself, and the French minister said all is well, the Chernobyl cloud stopped at the French border.

March 23, 2020

Disproof

Recurring disinformation narrative that Western governments cannot be trusted to manage a major accident/crisis. The narrative that the "Chernobyl cloud stopped at the French borders" is so well spread in France that is accepted as a cliché.

In the early days after the nuclear accident, in April 1986 not 1984 as stated on Sputnik, environmental associations and journalists spread the idea that the French Minister of Health or Pierre Pellerin, the Director of the Central Service for Protection against Ionising Radiation, said that the "cloud stopped at the French borders". This statement was never made. Pierre Pellerin won several defamation cases against NGOs and Media on this matter. Newspapers such as Le Parisien or Le Point admitted their mistake and explained how this false rumour started.

The US ambassador was evacuated from Moldova

Diplomats from the US embassy in Moldova and the citizens of the United States were evacuated. More than that, the US Ambassador to Moldova, Dereck Hogan, went overseas on March 16, one day before the state of emergency was announced. Did he know anything?

March 23, 2020

Disproof

This is a false claim that capitalises on the coronavirus pandemic to spread a conspiracy theory about the US and specifically the US ambassador to Moldova. Spreading conspiracy theories about US in context of the coronavirus has emerged as a recurring theme in the pro-Kremlin disinformation campaign around the outbreak.

After speculation emerged that Ambassador Dereck J. Hogan was leaving the country, the US Embassy published the following statement on its Facebook page: "The United States Embassy in Chisinau continues to operate. Ambassador Dereck J. Hogan and the Embassy's American and Moldovan staff members remain in Chisinau, working to maintain the strong bilateral relationship the United States and Moldova have enjoyed for years."

Germany called for lifting sanctions against Russia because of coronavirus

Germany called for the lifting of sanctions against Russia because of the coronavirus. Germany should rethink its attitude towards Russia and lift unproductive sanctions in light of the new coronavirus pandemic.

March 23, 2020

Disproof

Misleading title and the text that give readers the false impression that lifting sanctions on Russia is the position of the German authorities. It also pushes a recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative that sanctions against Russia are senseless and ineffective.

In fact, the sanctions from the US and the EU (including Germany) do not aim to punish Russia or the Russian people but were introduced to send a clear signal to the Russian government after Russia's illegal annexation of the Crimean peninsula, deployment of armed formations in eastern Ukraine, and the downing of the Malaysian passenger plane MH17.