DISINFO: There was coup d’état in Ukraine in 2014
SUMMARY
There was coup d’état in Ukraine in February 2014. Political and economic relations between Russia and Western countries had deteriorated after the coup in Ukraine in 2014. After the coup d’état in Kyiv in February 2014, there were mass protests in Crimea and Eastern Ukraine.
RESPONSE
Recurring pro-Kremlin narrative about Euromaidan. The spontaneous onset of the Euromaidan protests was a reaction of numerous parts of the Ukrainian population to former President Yanukovych’s sudden departure from the Association Agreement with the European Union in November 2013. See the previous debunk here. The 2014 presidential election in Ukraine was a genuine election largely in line with international commitments and respecting fundamental freedoms, despite the hostile security environment in two eastern regions of the country. According to the OSCE, "the people of Ukraine had the opportunity to genuinely express their will at the ballot box". This fact was reconfirmed by the parliamentary elections of 26 October 2014. The OSCE characterised the vote as "an amply contested election that offered voters real choice, and a general respect for fundamental freedoms".