Disinfo: Protests in Kazakhstan were organised by foreign-trained terrorists

Summary

Protests in Kazakhstan, which pose a threat to the country's integrity, were organised by foreign-trained terrorists.

Disproof

Emerging pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative alleging that the January 2022 anti-government protests in Kazakhstan are part of a foreign-inspired and directed plot. This claim is advanced as part of a push suggesting a Western policy of staging “colour revolutions” worldwide with the aim of destabilising Russia.

The pro-Kremlin media frequently falsely portray popular protests around the world as instigated from abroad, often by the US and the West. The disinformation narrative has been applied, among others, to reports about protests in Georgia, Ukraine, the Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Belarus, Venezuela, Slovakia, Hong Kong, with the aim of portraying protest movements as aggressive actors supported by foreign powers who constantly prepare new coups.

The trigger and immediate cause of the protests in Kazakhstan was the government's lifting of price controls on liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) that took place in early January in the Western region of Manghystau and unrest soon spread to the capital.

As the Guardian reports, the official story from the Kremlin began with explanations that the protests were a military coup organised by foreign terrorists. Later the notion of a "colour revolution" is added. However, the narrative is not based on facts and contains many gaps and inconsistencies.

There are however more deep-rooted causes for the protests in a country that suffers from a lack of democracy, corruption and economic difficulties despite being rich in economic resources. For example, Kazakhstan ranks 128 out of 167 countries in the 2020 Democracy Index, and also ranks 94 out of 180 countries in the 2020 Transparency International's Corruption Perception Index (CPI).

The EU High Representative urged Kazakhstan’s authorities to uphold their commitments at this challenging time, including respect for the human rights and fundamental freedoms of their citizens, particularly, the freedom of assembly, freedom of expression, and of the media.

Read similar cases claiming that US-sponsored Kazakhstan protests aimed to undermine CIS stability, that Protests in Kazakhstan are a new Western attempt to organise a colour revolution and that Kazakhstan faced a process of armed aggression by terrorists who received training abroad.

Go to search

publication/media

it.sputniknews.com (Archived)
  • Reported in: Issue 270
  • DATE OF PUBLICATION: 05/01/2022
  • Article language(s) Italian
  • Countries and/or Regions discussed in the disinformation: Kazakhstan
  • Keywords: Terrorism, Protest, Colour revolutions, West
see more

Disinfo: Ukraine continues to gather military equipment in Donbas

Ukraine continues to stack military equipment near contact lines in the Donbas region. The country breaks the ceasefire agreement by doing so. Ukraine also interfered with the OSCE mission to hide this equipment from the organisation's monitoring UAVs.

Jan 03, 2022
Disproof

Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative claiming that Ukraine is not willing to implement the Minsk agreements, and Ukraine's position is the only obstacle on the way to the peace process in Donbas.

According to the 04 January 2022 OSCE spot report covering the period between 31 December and 3 January, there were three armoured vehicles in the security zone in government-controlled areas; one BMP-1, one BMP-2, and one BTR-80.

Disinfo: US, UK and Canada tried to use Ukraine as a battery ram against Russia

In the Ukrainian crisis, Europe and Ukraine are used by the US, which will leave them at their own fate, as always. The destruction of those countries doesn’t matter much to the US as long as it happens far from its territory. In this case the US, UK and Canada tried to use Ukraine as a battery ram against Russia, and turn the Ukrainians into useful idiots that immolate themselves in an open war with Russia. Meanwhile the Anglo-Saxon allies will provide them all kind of support, such as slaps on the back.

Jan 03, 2022
Disproof

Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narratives about Ukrainian statehood and war in Ukraine. These claims are part of an ongoing disinformation campaign about Russia’s military buildup in the border with Ukraine. By accusing the US of being the driving force behind the escalation of tensions, this disinformation story aims to deny any Russian responsibility in the situation.

Since late October 2021, Russia has deployed more than 90,000 troops, as well as of certain specialized military units, electronic warfare systems and heavy-armoured vehicles along the borders of Ukraine.

Disinfo: The US and Annalena Baerbock are inciting the Ukrainians to war

Is the West inciting Ukraine in a search for new armed conflicts? Western countries are again threatening Russia with sanctions, while Ukraine wants to join NATO and cause new serious problems near the Russian borders because the West never renounced the idea of encircling and dividing Russia. It seems that the current US administration has completely rejected the attempt of Donald Trump’s former government to put in practice a rapprochement to Russia. Its current agenda is reduced to threats to Russia’s functioning and security, threatening it with war. Russia’s behaviour is merely defensive. Another factor is Angela Merkel’s exit. In her place, we have now Annalena Baerbock with her very problematic policy, which along with US State Department planners can really take this conflict beyond what is acceptable in international relations and cause another conflagration, by inciting Ukrainians to war.

Jan 03, 2022
Disproof

This is a mix of several recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narratives about Ukraine and encircling Russia, part of an ongoing disinformation campaign about Russia’s military buildup on the Ukrainian border.

By accusing the West, and especially the new governments in the US and Germany, of inciting conflict in Ukraine, and by labelling Russia’s moves as “merely defensive”, this article aims to deflect any Russian responsibility for the situation. The mention of German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock's policies as "problematic" an attempt is made to reduce her role. It further serves to prepare the ground to frame her party's longstanding opposition to Russian pipeline Nord Stream 2 for environmental and political reasons, including its possible cancellation in case of further escalation in Ukraine, as an aggressive, anti-Russian move.