Disinfo: The USA and NATO will not defend the Baltic states from a Russian attack

Summary

The USA can come with the help [to the Baltic states] only if it lays in its tactical interest in the geopolitical game with Russia. Under certain circumstances, it may be unprofitable for the Americans to raise the question of “Putin's imperial aggression against the Russian neighbours", so even if Russia attacks, NATO allies will simply ignore the Baltic states.

Disproof

Recurring pro-Kremlin narrative on NATO and the US military presence in Europe - it claims that the United States will not protect its European allies if it goes against the US national interests.

Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty is the critical component of the Alliance – it assumes that if a NATO Ally is a victim of an armed attack, every other member of the Alliance will consider this an attack against all members and will take the actions it deems necessary to assist the Ally attacked. In other words, Article 5 is the cornerstone of NATO – it has been invoked only once in history as a response to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.

The United States is the founding member of NATO and plays a crucial role in European and transatlantic security – since the end of WWII.

NATO has enhanced its forward presence in the eastern part of the Alliance, in a measures and balanced manner, with four multinational battalion-size battlegroups in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland, on a rotational basis. These battlegroups, led by the United Kingdom, Canada, Germany and the United States respectively, make clear that an attack on one Ally would be considered an attack on the whole Alliance.

Read similar disinformation cases: the US always abandons its allies; US troops will not defend Poland in case of a Russian attack and the USD will fulfil NATO’s Article 5 only if it is required by its national interests.

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pl.rubaltic.ru (Archived)
  • Reported in: Issue 245
  • DATE OF PUBLICATION: 20/05/2021
  • Article language(s) Polish
  • Countries and/or Regions discussed in the disinformation: US, Russia, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia
  • Keywords: Baltic states, NATO, US presence in Europe, Military, Russian expansionism
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Disproof

This article promotes recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narratives about “colour revolutions” and about global elites secretly ruling the world, particularly Soros. This is an example of a big conspiracy, which groundlessly attributes groundbreaking events in Belarus, Myanmar, Russia, and the US to the vicious activities of Soros and some unnamed transnational corporations. Read our past analysis "Why authoritarians love the concept of the big conspiracy."

There is no evidence that Soros or transnational corporations stood behind the mass protests in Belarus or Myanmar. The protests in Belarus erupted to contest the results of the presidential election on 9 August 2020, which were not monitored by independent experts, and are largely considered fraudulent by both international observers and a big part of the Belarusian society. On 19 August 2020, the European Council called Belarusian elections neither free nor fair.

Disinfo: Medvedchuk case is political, foreigners ordered Ukraine to cut links with Russia and Belarus

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Disproof

This is a recurring disinformation narrative from pro-Kremlin media outlets claiming that the West compels the Ukrainian leadership to cut all relations with Russia and that the recent legal action against pro-Kremlin politician Viktor Medvedchuk was a political case orchestrated from Western countries. In reality, these allegations are unsubstantiated.

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Disinfo: Experienced special forces have been working against the Belarusian authorities

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Disproof

A mixture of recurring disinformation narratives, including the notion that public discontent in Belarus following the Belarusian presidential elections in August 2020 was caused by Western intervention and that there was a US-directed coup attempt in Belarus in April 2021. These are accompanied by an unjustified contrast between Western and Belarusian secret services, unsubstantiated claims about public support for the authoritarian regime in Belarus, and a distorted portrayal of protesters as waging a supposed “Blitzkrieg”.

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