DISINFO: The EU has declared war on Russia and Belarus
DISINFORMATION CASE DETAILS
  • Outlet:
  • Date of publication: September 14, 2022
  • Reported in: Issue 309
  • Countries / regions discussed: Russia, Belarus, EU
Tags:
War in Ukraine Anti-Russian Ursula von der Leyen

DISINFO: The EU has declared war on Russia and Belarus

SUMMARY

Speaking in the European Parliament, EC President Ursula von der Leyen made strong statements in support of Ukraine. She is following the Germans of WWII. The EU has announced a war on Russia and Belarus.

RESPONSE

A recurring disinformation narrative drawing false parallels between the Nazi Germany and the EU. Pro-Kremlin outlets often use the myth of a Nazi Europe to justify Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine.

The EU is not at war with Russia or Belarus. Since Russia launched its unjustified aggression against Ukraine on 24 February 2022, the West has been calling for Russian withdrawal from Ukraine and a peaceful settlement. The EU has also imposed sanctions on the Belarusian regime due to its facilitation of Russia's military aggression against Ukraine, oppression against civil society in Belarus, the Ryanair Flight 4978 incident, escalation of the migration crisis on the EU border with Belarus, etc. (See more about the EU sanctions on Belarus here and about the US sanctions on the Belarus regime here).

The US, the EU and NATO condemns in the strongest possible terms Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which is entirely unjustified and unprovoked.

The US and Western states provide Ukraine with military assistance to repel the unprovoked Russian aggression and not because of their alleged animosity towards Russia. Some NATO member states are providing Ukraine with military assistance to repel the unprovoked Russian aggression, but they are not involved in fighting. Ukraine receives weapons with the sole aim of restoring its territorial integrity within its internationally recognised borders. Western instructors are teaching Ukrainian soldiers how to use modern weaponry, but there are no Western troops fighting on the front. NATO as an organisation is not involved in war in Ukraine.

Western countries are supporting Ukraine with military, political and humanitarian aid and are simultaneously trying to find a diplomatic solution to the war against Ukraine.

Judging by statements from some Russian politicians, it is Moscow who has hostile intentions against the West and makes no secret about it, while the West is compelled to deter such Russian actions. It is Russia who is waging a hybrid war, fusing soft and hard power to achieve Russia’s ends with both political and military means.

See the EU's response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine here along with EU vs Disinfo's Guide to Deciphering Pro-Kremlin disinformation around Putin's War.

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Disclaimer

Cases in the EUvsDisinfo database focus on messages in the international information space that are identified as providing a partial, distorted, or false depiction of reality and spread key pro-Kremlin messages. This does not necessarily imply, however, that a given outlet is linked to the Kremlin or editorially pro-Kremlin, or that it has intentionally sought to disinform. EUvsDisinfo publications do not represent an official EU position, as the information and opinions expressed are based on media reporting and analysis of the East Stratcom Task Force.

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