Disinfo: Poland is not an independent country, so it cannot manage its own foreign policy

Summary

Currently, Poland is not an independent country as it entirely depends on the United States in a political and military way, and on Germany in an economic way. It means that Poland is not able to implement an independent foreign policy.

Disproof

A common pro-Kremlin narrative on “lost sovereignty”. In the case of Poland, this country is often presented as a “puppet-state” of the United States (see here and here). The statement that the United States controls the Polish elites and political decision-making process is a conspiracy theory. Poland is a sovereign state, which shapes its own foreign and domestic policies. Moreover, it is a member of NATO and the EU and therefore contributes to the formation of the common external policies of these organisations. See another example of disinformation about Polish-American relations here.

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publication/media

pl.sputniknews.com (Archived)
  • Reported in: Issue 160
  • DATE OF PUBLICATION: 31/07/2019
  • Outlet language(s) Polish
  • Countries and/or Regions discussed in the disinformation: Poland, Germany, US
  • Keywords: Sovereignty, NATO
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Disinfo: There is no evidence of Russia’s involvement in the Skripals' poisoning

U.S. Congressmen are insisting on introducing a new package of restrictions against Moscow because of the poisoning of the ex-GRU officer Sergey Skripal. However, no evidence of Russia’s involvement in the Salisbury incident […] has been provided by the West.

Jul 30, 2019
Disproof

Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about the Skripal poisoning claiming that the United Kingdom was never able to prove a “Russian trace” and did not provide detailed evidence of Russia’s involvement. British police and investigations from the intelligence services have produced hard forensic evidence which was sufficient to charge two Russian nationals, identified as officers of the Russian Military Intelligence, GRU, for the attack on the Skripals. Following this attack, the United Kingdom notified the OPCW, invited them to confirm the identity of the substance involved, and briefed members of the Security Council. The OPCW’s independent expert laboratories confirmed the UK’s identification of the Russian produced Novichok nerve agent.

Disinfo: Schengen visa refusals violate Crimeans' human rights

The refusal by a number of EU member states to issue Schengen visas to Crimeans whose passports were issued after 2014 is a violation of human rights. This practice aims to punish the residents of Crimea for their will to self-determination, expressed during the 2014 referendum in which 97 percent of the peninsula’s inhabitants voted to reject the coup in Kyiv and rejoin Russia.

Jul 30, 2019
Disproof

Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about the illegal annexation of Crimea. Disinformation message appeared after a statement of the head of the European Union’s mission in Moscow, Marcus Ederer. On July 22, he stressed that the European Union did not recognise and will not recognise the Russian annexation of Crimea, therefore Russian passports issued in Crimea by the Russian authorities after the annexation will not be recognized and accepted when applying for a Schengen visa. Ederer advised residents of the peninsula to visit European countries using their Ukrainian documents. With the annexation of the Ukrainian Crimea, Russia forcibly imposed the citizenship of the occupying country on two million Crimeans. Crimeans remain citizens of Ukraine, who can obtain a biometric passport and freely take advantage of the visa-free regime with the European Union by visiting a wide list of states without obtaining any additional visas. The claim that the so-called Crimean referendum was an expression of Crimeans' self-determination is not true. The so-called referendum was organised by a self-proclaimed Crimean leadership lacking democratic legitimacy and installed by armed Russian military personnel following the seizure of public buildings.On March 27, 2014 the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution calling on states, international organizations and specialized agencies not to recognize any change in the status of Crimea or the Black Sea port city of Sevastopol, and to refrain from actions or dealings that might be interpreted as such. In March 2019 on the fifth anniversary of Crimea's annexation, the EU reiterated its position of non-recognition of illegal annexation of Crimea and Sevastopol. You can read more on the topic here, here and here.

Disinfo: Poroshenko and Saakashvili came to power thanks to the external support

Presidents who come to power thanks to the “orange revolutions” are doomed. Saakashvili left Georgia and cannot enter the country, and the other day Poroshenko left Ukraine. The former and the latter came to power thanks to the external [foreign] support and caused irreparable harm to their countries.

Jul 30, 2019
Disproof

A recurring pro-Kremlin narrative about the “colour revolutions” and the foreign support of the protests in Georgia (recent cases here and here and an older one here) and Ukraine (the recent case here). Both presidents of Georgia and Ukraine were elected in democratic elections in the aftermath of the anti-governmental protests.