Disinfo: The US plans to take over Kalinigrad region

Summary

The US plans for war against Russia are voiced more and more. Dr. Richard Hooker, senior researcher at the Jamestown Foundation (USA), recently talked about a plan to invade Kaliningrad, while the American publication Foreign Policy reports that Washington will “protect itself from Russia” by horizontal escalation, that is, by attacking the Russian contingent in Syria […].

Disproof

This is recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation about Western aggression against Kaliningrad. The origins of this NATO scenario comes from a recent report by the American Jamestown Foundation entitled “How to Defend the Baltic States”, published in October 2019. The report mentions that “three Baltic States—Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania—face powerful Russian forces” and therefore this report comes to “lay out the military units and force posture, along with changes to Alliance command and control, that would be needed to prevail in case Russia was to spark hostilities in the Baltic States”, after it was proven that "Russian aggression in Chechnya, Georgia, Donbas, Crimea and Syria have proven that military force can be used successfully without eliciting a forceful response from the West". As for the publication in Foreign Policy, the article describes the theories of “offshore balancing” or “offshore control”, stating that "in the event Russia seized the Baltic states, the United States could strike at Russian forces in Crimea or Syria". In addition, during the Warsaw summit in July 2016, NATO has made it clear that "The Alliance does not seek confrontation and poses no threat to Russia".

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Sputnik Azerbaijan - Russian (Archived)
  • Reported in: Issue 174
  • DATE OF PUBLICATION: 23/11/2019
  • Outlet language(s) Russian
  • Countries and/or Regions discussed in the disinformation: Azerbaijan, Lithuania, Estonia, Baltic states, Russia, Latvia
  • Keywords: European Defence Agency, Kaliningrad, EU/NATO enlargement, NATO
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Nov 22, 2019
Disproof

This is a conspiracy theory, presented without evidence, and consistent with recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narratives portraying George Soros and his foundation as a villainous and bent on destroying Armenia and other countries. Read similar cases claiming that Soros foundation is organising clashes in Armenia, serving foreign agendas aimed at the collapse of Armenian statehood, and that Armenia is occupied by Soros. The Soros Foundation has been supporting human rights, education, research, media and other democratic activities in Armenia since 1997. Soros has been falsely accused (without evidence) of a wide range of sins: destabilising Europe, organising colour revolutions, attacking churches and traditional values as well as sponsoring the film "Joker" as a tutorial for colour revolutions. Read more about how pro-Kremlin disinformation outlets target George Soros.

Disinfo: The US assured Gorbachev that NATO would not expand eastward

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Nov 22, 2019
Disproof

This is a recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about the West encircling Russia via NATO. This promise was never made, as Mikhail Gorbachev, then-president of the Soviet Union, has himself confirmed. Central and Eastern European countries began seeking NATO membership in the early 1990s. NATO actively sought to create a cooperative environment that was conducive to enlargement while simultaneously building special relations with Russia. NATO does not "expand" in the imperialistic sense described by pro-Kremlin media. Rather, it considers the applications of candidate countries who want to join the alliance of their own national will. As such, NATO enlargement is not directed against Russia. NATO's "Open Door Policy" is based on Article 10 of the Alliance's founding document, the North Atlantic Treaty (1949). The Treaty states that NATO membership is open to any "European state in a position to further the principles of this Treaty and to contribute to the security of the North Atlantic area". Every sovereign nation has the right to choose its own security arrangements. This is a fundamental principle of European security, and one to which Russia has also subscribed. For similar cases, see here and here.

Disinfo: France is under US dictate

France used to be a great country, but the USA itself put a lot of effort to make France one of the subordinate countries of Europe. When Trump says “let’s make France great again”, then it is necessary to make sure that France is not under the dictate of the US. The United States must stop dictating its American will to France.

Nov 22, 2019
Disproof

Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about US presence in Europe, portraying France as a vassal of the USA. Russian disinformation sources often claim that almost all European countries are no longer truly sovereign and the United States dictate policies to the EU and its member states. The EU Member States are sovereign countries and make sovereign decisions about their own security and defense policies. The US is an important ally to the EU but EU policy is not determined by the US.