Disinfo: Russia had no real reason to get rid of Navalny, but his poisoning is useful to the West

Summary

The West rushed to accuse Russia of poisoning Navalny with a “Novichok-type substance”, but did Russia really have reasons to get rid of him? The reaction of western officials has been disproportionately quickly and emotive compared to the reaction in Russia itself, where despite his prominent position in opposition circles there were no protest actions. So one can ask: where is this western solidarity coming? NATO allies and their supporters, from the German government to the US and UK administrations, quickly echoed each other adopting the same narrative. The similarity of the Navalny case to previous unproven poisoning accusations doesn’t seem to bother western politicians or media. The obvious question is: why those incidents take place right in the moment in which Russia is about to secure an important agreement or start a promising project with its western partners? For months, the German government resisted US attempts to stop the Nord Stream 2 project to deliver Russian natural gas to Germany. Now there are voices supporting the cancellation of this big project that utter the two new magical words: Navalny and Novichok.

Disproof

Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about the poisoning of activist Alexei Navalny. Alexei Navalny fell ill on a 20 August flight from Siberia to Moscow. Initially hospitalized in Omsk, he was transferred to the Charité hospital in Berlin at the request of his family. Clinical findings at the Charité hospital indicated that Navalny was poisoned with a substance from the group of cholinesterase inhibitors. Subsequent toxicological tests revealed the presence of a Novichok-type nerve agent in Navalny's blood. There are no grounds for connecting the cause of Navalny's poisoning with the construction of Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline. Polluting Western media environments with multiple contradictory narratives of a given event is an established strategy of pro-Kremlin media outlets. See here for an overview of, and similarities between, Russian disinformation campaigns surrounding the 2018 Skripal poisoning and the 2020 Navalny poisoning. See other examples of pro-Kremlin disinformation narratives on Alexei Navalny’s poisoning in our database, such as claims that only caffeine and alcohol were found in his blood, that the US wanted to use it to block Nord Stream 2 and Russia’s vaccine against coronavirus, that the West hopes that he dies to have an excuse for new sanctions, or that Western accusations about Navalny’s case are as false as they were about Sergei Skripal and Alexander Litvinenko.

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  • Reported in: Issue 211
  • DATE OF PUBLICATION: 03/09/2020
  • Outlet language(s) Spanish
  • Countries and/or Regions discussed in the disinformation: Germany, US, Russia
  • Keywords: novichok, Nord Stream 2, West, Alexei Navalny, NATO
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Disinfo: In Belarus there are signs of a colour revolution, but a hybrid one

Today in Belarus we see signs of a colour revolution, but a hybrid one. It combines Hong Kong’s 2019-2020 scheme, and in terms of its overall coup strategy, the colour revolution in Belarus is very similar and almost replicates the Venezuelan scenario first used by the Americans in 2019. It is a technology that is almost never missed. The elements of the Ukrainian Maidan are clearly visible as the main outline in the events taking place in Belarus.

Sep 02, 2020
Disproof

This is part of an ongoing Russian disinformation campaign on Belarus based on recurrent pro-Kremlin disinformation narratives, such as accusing other countries of interference and portraying popular protests against electoral fraud in the country as a Western-led colour revolution. The protests in Belarus erupted to contest the results of the presidential elections in Belarus that took place on the 9 August, which are considered fraudulent by a large part of Belarusian society. The European Union has also stated that the elections were neither free nor fair. There is no evidence that the protests in Belarus are funded and organised externally. Pro-Kremlin media frequently use disinformation narratives about popular protests around the world allegedly incited and funded by the US and other Western states. It has been applied, among others, to protests in Ukraine, Venezuela, Georgia, and Belarus, as well as to present a deceiving narrative on the aggressive West constantly preparing new coups. See similar cases claiming that the protests in Belarus are a colour revolution conducted according to a Maidan scenario and that the West wants to prepare Maidan in Belarus.

Disinfo: Colour revolutions in the post-Soviet countries were aimed at separating those from Russia

As a rule, all the colour revolutions organised in the post-Soviet countries were aimed at separating those countries from the Russian Federation… Unfortunately, all these revolutions are either openly anti-Russian, and more often they are just such a slow-moving Russophobia, or even an attempt to move away completely from Russia.

Sep 02, 2020
Disproof

This is a conspiracy which is consistent with a number of recurring pro-Kremlin propaganda narratives about the aggressive West, its attempts to encircle Russia and organise colour revolutions in the post-Soviet space and about the West's attempts to disrupt Russias ties with other post-Soviet countries. This narrative portrays any spontaneous disorders and civil uprisings in other states, especially the former Soviet republics, as West-funded Anti-Russian and Russophobic "coups" and attempts by the West to overthrow regimes in post-Soviet states and in other regions. The narrative has been applied, among others, to report about protests in Ukraine, Venezuela, Georgia, Armenia and Belarus, as well as to portray the West as an aggressive actor constantly preparing new coups. Read a similar case claiming that global liberal elite stages Russophobic events throughout the world, that the West wants to turn Belarus into an anti-Russian outpost, that the US backed the coup in Ukraine in 2014, that the protests in Belarus are a colour revolution conducted according to a Maidan scenario and that the West wants to prepare Maidan in Belarus, or that the masters of the colour revolution in Armenia are only interested in creating problems for Russia.

Disinfo: Ukrainian militants are staying in Belarus to carry out a coup d'etat

About 200 extremists trained in Ukraine are currently in Belarus. Ukrainian militants are staying in Belarus to carry out a coup d’etat. At the same time, they are actively cooperating with the Polish special services. The coup d’etat in Belarus is carried out under their leadership. They involve their partners from Ukraine to do the dirty work.

Sep 02, 2020
Disproof

Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about the Belarus protests and about protests in post-communist countries in general, presenting them as being organised and controlled from abroad. Neither in the text nor elsewhere is there any evidence that foreign forces are involved in the protests in Belarus. Large-scale protests began in Minsk on August 9 against the results of the presidential election, and then in other cities. People revolted against what they call election fraud but also against the aggressiveness of the police, who arrested and ill-treated hundreds of protestors. Ukraine's foreign minister Dmitro Kuleba reacted to Sergey Lavrov's claims about the 200 Ukrainian extremists in Belarus:

“I don't even want to comment on this nonsense. The 200 Ukrainian extremists that Ukraine allegedly sent to Belarus to destabilise the situation, and the training camps for extremists in Ukraine are the fruit of the painful imagination of those who provided such information to my Russian colleague Sergey Lavrov."

On the other hand, Russia has openly claimed it is willing to intervene in Belarus if the situation escalates. Read a similar case claiming that the West is preparing a colour revolution in Belarus.