Disinfo: Protests in France were instigated by the US

Summary

As soon as Macron started to criticise NATO and to lobby the creation of a European army, he faced troubles inside the country. He cannot engage in the foreign policy of the European Union anymore. Does it have some connection with his anti-American agenda?! Look at who benefits from this, look at what happens to countries where something does not coincide with the interests of the US.

Disproof

It is one of the pro-Kremlin conspiracy theories hinting that the protests in France are caused by the US intrusion. It is consistent with the previous narratives about the “colour revolutions” and the US role in them.

The protests in France were motivated by a governmental initiative to increase fuel prices. Later popular discontent was caused by the planned pension reform.

The EU Member States are sovereign countries and make sovereign decisions about their own security and defence policies. The US is an important ally to the EU but EU policy is not determined by the US.

See previous disinformation narratives arguing that “Yellow vests” are Trump’s instrument to fight the Rothschilds and that The riots over fuel prices in France are an example of the US-sponsored colour revolutions.

Go to search

publication/media

View original

View archived

Reported in: Issue 180
DATE OF PUBLICATION: 12/01/2020
Language/target audience: Russian
Country: US, France
Keywords: Conspiracy theory, Protest, Colour revolutions
Outlet: Evrozona @ Vesti FM time 3:10-4:15

Whistleblowers expose lack of evidence in OPCW’s Douma report

The credibility of the OPCW’s final report on the 2018 chemical attack in Douma, Syria has been fundamentally compromised by whistleblowers.

An OPCW engineering assessment leaked in May 2019 shows that chlorine canisters were manually placed at the scene of the incident, rather than dropped from the air as the OPCW has claimed.

An internal e-mail by an unnamed employee shows that the final version of the Douma report deviates considerably from the interim report and cherry-picks facts to support a predetermined conclusion.

January 14, 2020

Disproof

Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narratives attacking the independence and integrity of the OPCW; lending credence to the claim that the 2018 Douma attack was staged; and absolving the Syrian regime of responsibility for chemical attacks in general.

The story relies mostly on two already-debunked leaks and does nothing to undermine the conclusions reached by OPCW. The concerns raised in the first document have been addressed in the final report (see Annex 6, pp. 55-6) and do not support the claim that the incident was staged. See the full debunk here.

Tallinn waged crusade against critical media

Tallinn waged its aggressive crusade against critical media under the pretext of observing the EU sanctions regime, which includes personal sanctions against the director of Sputnik’s parent holding. Estonia is the only EU country which has used the law for such purposes.

January 14, 2020

Disproof

Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative painting Western governments as hostile toward "alternative voices" in the media, particularly Russian ones.

Estonia is on the 11th place of Reporters without Borders Press freedom index. Estonia has not blocked Sputnik Estonia's website, it is accessible and operational. The Minister of Foreign Affairs Urmas Reinsalu has emphasized that Estonia has not taken any measures against the portal's media content: "They are financial sanctions aimed at economic activity. I believe it to be justified. We have notified the European Commission's Legal Service. European agencies have said in the Commission that steps taken by Estonia in exercising sanctions policy are warranted."

People who seized power in Ukraine, in 2014, are Nazis

Those people who came to power in 2014, in Ukraine, who, more precisely, seized the power, are Nazis. These are people who glorify their heroes in Nazi uniforms, who go around with Nazi swastikas, and it’s impossible to imagine that they would go around Red Square in their right mind someday.

January 14, 2020

Disproof

A recurring pro-Kremlin narrative about the Nazis in Ukraine.

The myth of Nazi-ruled Ukraine has been the cornerstone of Russian disinformation about the country since the very beginning of the 2013-14 Euromaidan protests, when it was used to try to discredit the pro-European popular uprising in Kyiv and, subsequently, the broader pro-Western shift in Ukraine's foreign policy.