Disinfo: Poles were the first to sign a pact with Hitler in 1934

Summary

Poles were the first to sign a pact with Hitler in 1934, hoping to participate in the “onslaught to the east.” Five years later, in September 1939, Poland paid the price for its treachery and remained on the world map only thanks to the courage of the Red Army.

Disproof

This message is part of the Kremlin’s policy of historical revisionism and an attempt to erode the disastrous historical role of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact by stating that other European countries signed various international agreements with Germany throughout the 1930s. The same article contains another disinformation message about Poland planning to partition the USSR. It is impossible to compare the German-Polish Non-Aggression Pact of 1934 with the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact as the former was a standard international agreement aimed at the mutual recognition of borders and a declaration that existing political contradictions would be solved through diplomatic tools. There is no evidence that this pact contained any secret protocols, which assumed common aggressive actions of Germany and Poland against the USSR or other countries. Moreover, the pact did not include any agreements on advanced political, economic and military relations between Poland and Germany. While the Red Army's contribution to the liberation of Poland is a fact, it did not achieve it single-handedly as is often suggested by pro-Kremlin narratives. The article fails to notice that there was a strong resistance movement in Poland, the Home Army, Armia Krajowa. It was one of the largest resistance groups in occupied Europe, numbering over 350,000 soldiers. In August 1944, as the Red Army was approaching the Eastern Suburbs of Warsaw, Armia Krajowa organised an uprising against the Nazis. But the Soviet advance stopped, allowing Germans to regroup and destroy the city during the suppression of the uprising, which lasted 63 days. The Home Army was disbanded on 19 of January 1945 to avoid civil war and armed conflict with the Soviets. Read similar examples of the Russian historical revisionism concerning Poland such as Poland posed a military threat to the USSR in 1938-1939, Nazi Germany considered Poland its best ally, if Poland realised a rational policy in 1939, Moscow would have had a different approach towards it and the German-Polish Non-Aggression Pact of 1934 assumed the partition of the USSR.

Go to search

publication/media

Ritm Evrazii (Archived)
  • Reported in: Issue 216
  • DATE OF PUBLICATION: 12/10/2020
  • Outlet language(s) Russian
  • Countries and/or Regions discussed in the disinformation: Poland, Germany
  • Keywords: Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, Historical revisionism, Red Army, USSR, WWII, Adolf Hitler
see more

Disinfo: The US is on the verge of a civil war, and militias are only a reaction against government abuse

The US is on the verge of a civil war, as shown by the case of 13 members of a militia called Wolverine Watchmen, who are accused of conspiring to kidnap the governor of Michigan, Gretchen Whitmer. Top democrats, including Whitmer and Joe Biden, tried to blame Trump for it, but the events in Michigan were not an expression of crazed white supremacy, but a matter of abuse of power by the government and the feeling of frustration among a population segment who thinks that there is little, if anything, that they can do about it.

Oct 11, 2020
Disproof

Recurrent disinformation narrative about the United States consistent with a narrative on the imminent collapse of the Western society.

Contrary to the claim, the Wolverine Watchmen is an extremist group who aspired to cause a civil war in the US through violent action that involved kidnapping or even killing top US officials, not a reaction against alleged governmental abuses.

Disinfo: Colour revolution in Kyrgyzstan confirms that democracy has exhausted itself

Another colour revolution in Kyrgyzstan confirms that democracy has exhausted itself. The current democratic model of the political structure has exhausted itself since the mechanisms for the re-election of the parliament and the head of state not only fail to ensure the continuity of power but become an instrument for destabilising the situation in the country and destroying statehood. There is no longer any popular control of the leadership, nor the will of the population, but it has become a weapon of aggression, an instrument of hybrid warfare.

Oct 11, 2020
Disproof

Conspiracy theory, recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about a "colour revolution" in Kyrgyzstan, mixed with a narrative about the collapse of democracy. The protests in Kyrgyzstan erupted to contest the results of the parliamentary elections that took place on 4 October, which are considered unfair by oppositional parties. As a result of the elections, none of the twelve established oppositional parties secured seats in the parliament. The parties declared they would not recognise the results of the voting. The president and the ruling parties were accused of vote-buying and voter intimidation. On 7 October, the electoral authorities annulled the election results. Democracy is a prevalent political regime in the most developed countries in the world. States with full democracy have the most transparent electoral processes, allow widespread political participation of the citizens, support civil liberties, and guarantee transparency of the government. States with democratic regimes guarantee fundamental individual rights, high level of political equality, ensure human development, improve health and education systems, and support a broad range of personal freedoms. See similar cases claiming that there is a deterioration of democracy in the West, that authoritarian regimes are best at handling disasters, or that China is more democratic than the US.

Disinfo: Euro-Atlantic powers want to use Navalny's case to foil Nord Stream 2

Behind the [Alexy] Navalny case are Euro-Atlantic interests aimed at promoting anti-Russian policy. It is clear that what the Euro-Atlantic powers are interested in is not clarifying the situation around Navalny, but rather foiling the “Nord Stream 2” gas pipeline between Russia and Europe.

Oct 10, 2020
Disproof

This is a pro-Kremlin conspiracy theory aimed at linking the case of Alexei Navalny with the Nord Stream 2 project. See a very similar case here (although in this case, the United States is accused alone). A prominent Russian opposition figure Alexey Navalny fell ill during a flight and the plane had to make an emergency landing in Omsk. Doctors there said he was in a coma and they were trying to save his life. Since then he has been transferred to Berlin and is receiving treatment at Berlin's Charité Hospital. The German Federal government said that toxicological tests provided “unequivocal evidence of a chemical nerve agent of the Novichok group” in the blood samples of Alexei Navalny. The European Union condemned the poisoning of Alexei Navalny in the strongest possible terms. Read similar disinformation messages alleging that Americans are recouping their long-term investment in Navalny, the West has an interest in the death of Navalny to launch a new wave of sanctions against Russia, or that US used Navalny case to block Russian vaccine against COVID-19, or that political scandal in Austria was a CIA operation to stop the construction of Nord Stream 2.