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Disinfo: The war in Ukraine started because the parliament did not want to vote for the law on languages

Summary

On 31 March 2014, the head of the Donetsk Oblast Council, Andriy Shishatskyi asked the Verkhovna Rada to vote for a law on a referendum and a law on languages. But he was ignored. This is the reason the war started. That is why Ukraine is in a state of war. As a result of the coup, someone came to power and did everything to make Ukraine lose Donbas.

Disproof

This is an example of a recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative on the war in Ukraine.

The war in Donbas did not start because of any actions, or lack thereof, by Ukraine's parliament. It is a well-documented act of aggression by Russian armed forces.

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. In turn, the active phase of the Donbas war was triggered with the 12 April 2014 assault on the city of Slovyans'k, led by Russian intelligence officer Igor Girkin. By September that year, Russia had sent up to 15,000 regular troops into the region.

See similar disinformation cases alleging that Donbas rebelled because Russians in Ukraine were subjected to ethnocide, that a civil war began in Ukraine after the clique seized power, that Germany, France, and Ukraine admitted they need a war in Donbas, that the Euromaidan coup caused the breakout of civil war in Eastern Ukraine, or that Russia is not a conflict party in Ukraine.

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publication/media

Nash TV Channel - YouTube [from 37 to 01:27] (Archived)
  • Reported in: Issue 225
  • DATE OF PUBLICATION: 09/12/2020
  • Language/target audience: Russian
  • Country: Russia, Ukraine
  • Keywords: Eastern Ukraine, Russian language, War in Ukraine, Coup, Donbas, Euromaidan

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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