Disinfo: Russia is not an historic aggressor, neither the Soviet Union nor the Russian Empire

Summary

Our partners say all the time that we are acting aggressively, assuming that we have always acted aggressively.

Russia or our country, whether it is the Russian Federation, the Soviet Union or the Russian Empire has never been at the origin of world war for example WWI or WWII. We have never caused a global collapse, an international disaster. It never happened. With other countries, yes. And this has been done by countries which for some reason now call us an aggressor, a historical aggressor. This is fake news, it is not true.

Disproof

Recurrent disinformation narrative: The Soviet Union and Russia were always defending themselves and were never the aggressor of other countries or involved in the start of global conflicts.

In 2019 for the 80th anniversary of the start of the Second World War and the importance of European remembrance for the future of Europe, the European Parliament stated that:

"The Government of Russia is now not only not condemning the signing of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, but is actively re-establishing it as a means of defending the nation against aggressors, and is thus by extension rewriting history and exonerating the perpetrators of the associated crimes;

whereas it has become commonplace for Russia to deny responsibility and blame hostilities on the West in its official rhetoric, creating a reliable propaganda base upon which it can rely to justify its disregard of international law and continue its aggression against Eastern Partnership countries;

Stresses that the Second World War, the most devastating war in Europe’s history, was caused by the notorious Nazi-Soviet Treaty of Non-Aggression of 23 August 1939, also called the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, and its secret protocols, which allowed two totalitarian regimes that shared the goal of world conquest to divide Europe into two zones of influence"

The myth of a defensive and not aggressive Soviet Union/Russia contain false flag operations as casus belli (for instance in the First Soviet-Finnish War) and hybrid war techniques (in today’s Ukraine).

In Ukraine, Donbas: There is irrefutable evidence of direct Russian military involvement in Eastern Ukraine, in the Donbas. The EU condemns the clear violation of Ukrainian sovereignty and territorial integrity by acts of aggression by the Russian armed forces since February 2014. The European Union stated in July 2014 that "arms and fighters continue flowing into Ukraine from the Russian Federation".

In the Georgian Region of South Ossetia, a recurring pro-Kremlin narrative tries to deny any role for Russia in the war of 2008 which resulted in the further occupation of South Ossetia and Abkhazia by additional military forces from Russia; a clear violation of Georgia's sovereignty. Many international organisations condemned the further occupation of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, see for example the European Parliament's declaration. The EU's independent investigative commission into the 2008 Russia-Georgian war confirmed that Russia had been provoking Georgia for a long time and "Much of the Russian military action went far beyond the reasonable limits of defence.

Read also related cases: Russia is not an aggressor or occupier in Donbas, Syria, South Ossetia , Russia is not an aggressor in case of Crimea , USSR was not an aggressor in World War 2, it was forced to sign the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact , The US creates and spreads a false image about an “aggressive” Russia constituting a security “threat”

publication/media

  • Reported in: Issue 245
  • DATE OF PUBLICATION: 17/05/2021
  • Article language(s) French, German
  • Countries and/or Regions discussed in the disinformation: Russia
  • Keywords: Hybrid war, War in Ukraine, War preparation, World War 2, USSR, WWII, false flag
see more

Disinfo: Czech Republic's accusations about Kremlin involvement in Vrbětice explosions are part of Russophobic campaign

The Czech Republic's unfounded accusations about Kremlin involvement in the Vrbětice explosions are part of a vast Russophobic campaign promoted by the West.

Disproof

Recurring pro-Kremlin narrative that labels any Western accusations against the Kremlin’s unacceptable international behaviour as factually unfounded and driven by Russophobia, even if such accusations are supported by clear evidence.

In October and December 2014, two explosions occurred in ammunition depots at a former army complex of warehouses and factories in the small town of Vrbětice, near the border with Slovakia.

Disinfo: Ukraine persecutes Medvedchuk to please Joe Biden

Ukrainian authorities have been persecuting Viktor Medvedchuk and his fellow parliamentarians to please US President Joe Biden and his foreign policy course.

Disproof

Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative alleging that Ukraine is not an independent state and decisions regarding its fate are made by actors in the West.

Contrary to the disinformation narrative, ongoing legal disputes surrounding Medvedchuk are of domestic in nature. On 11 May 2021, Medvedchuk was charged with high treason and, on 13 May, he was placed under house arrest after the Pechersky district court rejected a request from prosecutors to place him under pre-trial detention.

Disinfo: Claiming to fight the already defeated Daesh, US military in Syria aims to plunder the country's natural resources

The Biden administration is continuing previous US policy towards Syria aimed at plundering Syria’s natural resources and grain supplies. The alleged threat of a rebirth of DAESH, which was defeated in 2017, is used to justify US military presence in Syria. The US military, together with allied Syrian and Kurdish militias, have smuggled oil in hundreds of trucks and tankers. The US military and these militias have smuggled 38 convoys of grain and oil through the Al-Walid border crossing. 

Disproof

This is a recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about Syrian war aimed at discrediting US military operations in Syria to counter DAESH (ISIS or ISIL). This narrative is consistent with a recurring pro-Kremlin message claiming that US uses the fight against terrorism as an excuse to conduct military operations aimed at looting other countries’ natural resources.

Counterterrorism operations against DAESH have been the top priority of US policy in Syria since 2014.