Disinfo: Radioactive substances brought to Ukraine could be used to make a "dirty bomb"

Summary

Containers filled with radioactive substances were brought into the port of Chornomorsk from the territory of one European state, bypassing the customs inspection. Similar containers of radioactive substance Californium-252 were brought into the port of Odesa by one of the cargo ships.

These substances may be used as components of munitions or to make a "dirty bomb".

Disproof

Pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative capitalising on fear of nuclear material and trying to accuse the West of providing weapons to Ukraine with the capability of nuclear strike. This is a part of a wider disinformation campaign whose ultimate goal is to present Ukraine as a threat to Russia and therefore justify Russia’s unprovoked aggression against its peaceful neighbour.

The claims made by Russia about Ukraine’s plans to acquire or detonate a nuclear artifact have been made multiple times, but have not been backed by any evidence, and some of them have been positively proven as false. Under the Budapest memorandum in 1994, Ukraine promised to remove all Soviet-era nuclear weapons from its territory, send them to disarmament facilities in Russia, and sign the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty. Ukraine kept these promises. In return, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States promised that none of them would ever threaten or use force against the territorial integrity or political independence of Ukraine. They specifically pledged they would refrain from making each other's territory the object of military occupation or engage in other uses of force in violation of international law.

Previously Western leaders have rejected Russia's 'dirty bomb' claim, and EU High Representative Josep Borrell dismissed the allegations as false. In addition, diplomats from France, Britain and the United States called Russia’s allegation a pretext that Moscow has developed for escalating the war. The West supports Ukraine with military and financial aid for the country’s efficient self-defence, in accordance with the UN Charter, to stop Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine.

See other examples of similar disinformation narratives, such as claims that Western tanks given to Ukraine could deliver nuclear warheads, that Kyiv passed from rejecting nuclear weapons to preparing a dirty bomb and that Ukraine is going to use a dirty bomb to accuse Russia of using tactical nuclear weapons.

publication/media

  • Reported in: Issue 330
  • DATE OF PUBLICATION: 01/03/2023
  • Article language(s) Russian, Georgian
  • Countries and/or Regions discussed in the disinformation: Ukraine, Russia
  • Keywords: West, Radiation, Nuclear issues, Invasion of Ukraine, War in Ukraine
*
This disinformation claim was broadcast on the date mentioned above. Due to the EU decisions  to temporarily restrict the spread and dissemination of RT, Sputnik and other instruments used to manipulate information and promote disinformation about the invasion of Ukraine inside the EU, access to the link may not work inside the EU.
see more

Disinfo: NATO destroyed trust in the New START treaty

NATO experts are helping Kyiv launch drone strikes against Russian airfields hosting long-range bombers that are part of Moscow's nuclear deterrent. Washington and NATO's proxy war against Russia has destroyed the basis of trust on which the New START treaty was originally built.

Disproof

New pro-Kremlin disinformation claim about the war in Ukraine and about nuclear issues in the context of Moscow’s decision to suspends its participation in the New START arms control treaty.

Both the Engels-2 airfield in Saratov Oblast and the Dyagilevo airfield in Ryazan Oblast are military facilities managed by the Russian Ministry of Defence. If there were Ukrainian strikes on both objects, they would be legal under Article 52 of the Geneva Convention (Protocol I).

Disinfo: German tanks arrive in Ukraine with neo-Nazi symbols

A train carrying tanks was filmed in Mannheim, Germany, on its way to Ukraine via Poland. On one of the tank wagons you can see the neo-Nazis' favourite number: 14/88. These numbers refer to the 88 laws written by David Lane and the content of the '14 words'. They are also used s a veiled celebration of Adolf Hitler and thus to identify each other, as the "H" is the 8th letter of the German alphabet, thus 88 = HH, which means "Heil Hitler". This reference is also often found in the names of various neo-Nazi bands (e.g. Division 88).

Disproof

This is part of pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about international support for Ukraine. The claim targets the delivery of German tanks Leopard 2 to Ukraine, and is attempting to falsely portray the Kyiv government as a "Nazi regime".

The original picture comes from a video made in Mannheim, Germany, published on March 2022. The video shows a train loaded with tanks, but there is no Nazi or any other signs painted on them. Thus the picture was taken out of context and manipulated to support the Kremlin’s narrative about the invasion of Ukraine.

Disinfo: NATO might disintegrate because of the Nord stream pipelines explosions

Blowing up the Nord Stream pipelines could lead to consequences contrary to US President Joe Biden's desire to preserve NATO unity. By sabotaging the pipelines, Biden has started something he does not understand and it is a question of time to see which country will leave NATO first.

Disproof

This is part of a wider pro-Kremlin disinformation campaign aiming to amplify and exploit Seymour Hersh’s controversial article accusing the US of blowing up the Nord Stream pipelines.

The claims made in the article have been credibly debunked by journalists, experts and OSINT researchers, such as claims about NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg cooperating with the US since the Vietnam War (who was 15 at the time this war ended), the use of the M350 Alta ship (which had been out of use since 2012 and sent to the scrapyard in 2022), or that a P-8 aircraft of the Norwegian Navy was involved to detonate the explosives (none of Norway’s P-8 was remotely closer to the area of the explosions).