DISINFO: Russian takeover of Crimea prevented Polish coup d'état in Belarus
SUMMARY
Russia is the only state genuinely interested in Ukraine’s integrity. Western countries want Ukraine as a state to disappear. The US was only interested in Crimea as a springboard for US missiles, to create a deadly threat to Russia and Belarus. If Crimea were under the Pentagon’s control, the situation in the whole region would change radically for the worse, and provoke Poland’s aggression. If Poland wouldn’t execute an outright military intervention in Belarus, it would have at least organised a successful coup d’état.
RESPONSE
This is a recurring pro-Kremlin narrative about Russia's true peaceful intentions that contains disinformation elements about the war in Ukraine and the West's aggressive intentions. It is consistent with other recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narratives that Russia did not contribute to the disintegration of Donbas and that there are no Russian soldiers in Ukraine. For similar cases see here. There is absolutely no evidence that the US planned a takeover of Crimea or planned to place any missiles on the peninsula. The Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court has stated that “[t]he information available suggests that the situation within the territory of Crimea and Sevastopol amounts to an international armed conflict between Ukraine and the Russian Federation. This international armed conflict began at the latest on 26 February 2014 when the Russian Federation deployed members of its armed forces to gain control over parts of the Ukrainian territory without the consent of the Ukrainian Government." There is no evidence given for the claim that Poland was or would have prepared an aggressive operation against Belarus. This is another recurring disinformation narrative, as shown in previous cases here and here.