DISINFO: The US and EU organized a neo-Nazi coup in Ukraine, which led to the loss of Crimea and an uprising in Donbas
SUMMARY
Anti-Russian sanctions – imposed in 2014 after the United States and the EU organized an armed neo-Nazi coup in Ukraine, which led to the loss of Crimea and an uprising in Donbas – have been going on for six years.
RESPONSE
Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation campaign against Ukraine, containing multiple disinformation narratives. There was no neo-Nazi coup d'état in Ukraine organised by the US or the EU. The spontaneous onset of the Euromaidan protests was an organic reaction by numerous parts of the Ukrainian population to former President Yanukovych’s sudden departure from the promised Association Agreement with the European Union in November 2013. See similar cases here. Euromaidan did not lead to the loss of Crimea; this occurred through Russia's illegal annexation of Crimea. No international body has recognised the so-called Crimean referendum, announced on 27 February 2014, and held on 16 March 2014. Thirteen members of the United Nations Security Council voted in favour of a resolution declaring the referendum invalid. On 27 March 2014, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution which stated that the referendum in Crimea was not valid and could not serve as a basis for any change in the status of the peninsula. On 17 December 2018, the UN General Assembly confirmed its non-recognition of the illegal annexation of Crimea. On the fifth anniversary of Crimea's annexation, the EU reiterated its position of non-recognition of the landgrab and continues to stand in full solidarity with Ukraine, supporting its sovereignty and territorial integrity. The war in eastern Ukraine is not a uprising or West-driven civil conflict but a well-documented case of Russian armed aggression.The international community, including the European Union, recognises and condemns clear violations of Ukrainian sovereignty and territorial integrity by acts of aggression by the Russian armed forces since February 2014. More cases can be found here. Since March 2014, the EU has progressively imposed restrictive measures against Russia. The measures were adopted in response to the illegal annexation of Crimea and the deliberate destabilisation of Ukraine.