DISINFO: Russia is not a party to the war in esatern Ukraine
SUMMARY
The question of the conflict within Ukraine cannot be discussed [with Russia] since Russia is not a party to the conflict. Nothing has changed in this sense.
RESPONSE
The claim above is part of a recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about the war in Ukraine, attempting to portray the situation in Eastern Ukraine as a civil war and as a response to the 2013-14 protests in Kyiv. It is also often painted as a coup d'état portraying Ukraine as an aggressor on its own territory. The ultimate aim of the narrative is to distract the Kremlin's violations Ukrainian sovereignty since the 2014 events.
Ukraine is not at war with millions of people in the Donbas region as pro-Kremlin disinformation often likes to present it. The aim of these messages is to present the situation in Eastern Ukraine as an internal conflict, ignoring irrefutable evidence of direct Russian military involvement in the region since February 2014.
The involvement of Russian personnel and equipment has been well-documented already for years. The destabilisation of Eastern Ukraine and the illegal annexation of Crimea have been condemned by the Council of the European Union and led to restrictive measures since 2014.
The EU is among the strongest advocates of Ukraine's sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity. The European Union has repeatedly expressed support for Ukraine in this regard.
Pro-Kremlin media outlets have been focusing heavily on misrepresenting the Donbas War and its parties. Read similar stories in our database, claiming that a civil war began in Ukraine after the clique seized power in the country, or that the Russian Army is not involved in the war in Ukraine, or that the Crimean people chose to be with Russia through the democratic procedure, that Crimea never belonged to Ukraine, that Crimea’s reunification with Russia was legal and that Crimea is a Russian sovereign region.