Disinfo: Ukraine to sell its land to West in exchange for friendship

Summary

Ukraine thinks its friendship with the West is for free, but it is not. Ukraine will pay for it by letting the West buy its land.

Disproof

This is a relatively recent disinformation narrative from pro-Kremlin media, claiming that Ukraine’s law on the circulation of agricultural land will lead to its territory being sold to foreigners.

In reality, the law, which entered into force on 1 July 2021, stipulates that Ukrainian citizens alone can acquire up to 100 hectares of land each. From 1 January 2024, companies owned by Ukrainians will be able to buy up to 10,000 hectares of land. The law prohibits the purchase of land by foreigners. The issue of whether foreign citizens will be able to purchase land in Ukraine or not will be decided by a national referendum.

Different countries have different legislation on buying property and it is the sovereign right of every nation to decide on this issue.

The EU-Ukraine Association Council, at a meeting in 2020, welcomed Kyiv's move towards opening the land market. This market "should be based on the rule of law and the principles of sustainability, transparency, fairness and inclusiveness," a joint press statement said. However, Western support of Kyiv is not contingent on land laws in Ukraine. Kyiv receives aid from its partners in order to complete reforms on its Euro-Atlantic path. The West also provides Ukraine with technical and military assistance against Russian aggression in the eastern region of Donbas. Ukraine receives this aid irrespective of its land legislation.

See similar disinformation narratives here and here about the alleged loss of Ukrainian territorial integrity because of land legislation.

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publication/media

Pervyi Kanal [from 00:58:04 to 00:59:55] [from 00:58:04 to 00:59:55] (Archived)
  • Reported in: Issue 251
  • DATE OF PUBLICATION: 02/07/2021
  • Article language(s) Russian
  • Countries and/or Regions discussed in the disinformation: Ukraine, Russia
  • Keywords: Ukrainian statehood, War in Ukraine, humanitarian aid
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Disinfo: EU is increasingly interfering in Russia’s domestic affairs

The EU has multiplied its attempts to interfere in Russia’s internal affairs by pressuring it with sanctions and influencing the socio-political situation in the country. Based on official documents and statements by the EC, EP, and the EEAS, the EU clearly intends to continue sponsoring certain political groups in Russia under the guise of supporting so-called “civil society”. Josep Borrell, who has been entrusted by the European Council with advancing the EU’s infrastructure for interference in Russia, stated in June 2021 that the EU will search for new avenues to support its proteges in Russia. Information attacks by foreign media and agents targeting the legitimacy of Russia’s general elections have also increased. A case in point was the report by the foreign agency “Golos”, which included invented numbers and manipulative assessments.

Jul 01, 2021
Disproof

A pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative that accuses the EU of interfering in Russia’s domestic affairs, but does not provide any tangible evidence to support this claim. This message is consistent with the wider disinformation campaign claiming that any sort of civil discontent or even basic monitoring of government policies in Russia is not genuine and fueled from the outside, specifically by the West, for supposedly nefarious purposes.

The EU’s sanctions against Russia and EU support for civil society in Russia are a response to Kremlin’s aggressive and illiberal policies at home and abroad. Russia’s consistent and increasingly intimidating breaches of international law, such as its involvement in the ongoing war in Ukraine and its intelligence operations against Western states, go against the legal commitments Russia has made to the EU, the Council of Europe, and the wider international community. The Kremlin’s intelligence operations (including assassinations, sabotage, espionage, and disinformation campaigns) in EU member states, such as in Bulgaria, Czechia, Germany, Poland, and elsewhere, represent an active threat to the EU, both materially and ideologically.

Disinfo: Poland is drifting from Russophobia to the justification of Nazism

The Polish intellectual circles are gradually drifting from Russophobia and falsification of history to the partial justification of Fascism. The anti-Russian aspirations of the Polish authorities have virtually no borders. The example of the Polish Institute of National Remembrance shows a process of gradual evolution from Russophobia and historical falsifications to the partial justification of Fascism. This situation shows the danger coming from the rewriting of history in order to achieve current political goals. For a long time, Warsaw and its pseudoscientific forgers, who cannot be called historians, have been showing that they do not know such notions as historical memory and respect for history. Russia cannot ignore the Polish attempts to revise history from the position “close to ideological partners of the Nazis”.

Jul 01, 2021
Disproof

This message is part of the Kremlin’s policy of historical revisionism. It accuses Poland of the “falsification and rewriting” of its history and, sometimes, Poland is presented as a supporter of Nazi ideology.

The Institute of National Remembrance (IPN) is a Polish government institution in charge of the prosecution, archives, education and lustration, in relation to crimes against the Polish nation. The IPN investigates Nazi and Communist crimes committed between 1917 and 1990, documents its findings and disseminates them to the public.

Disinfo: Poland and the “Young Europeans” worsen the relations between the EU and Russia

The relations between Moscow and Brussels is the hostage of the Russophobic approach of the “Young Europeans” and Poland, which consistently escalate tensions in relations with Russia. These sides take quite an irreconcilable position. These countries speak the most about their concerns about the ephemeral threat they see in the Russian Federation. At the same time, the same “Young Europeans” [new EU member states] consistently follow the path of escalating tensions in relations with Russia.

Jul 01, 2021
Disproof

This message is a part of the Kremlin’s widespread narrative about anti-Russian, Russophobic countries of Eastern and Central Europe, deliberately worsening their relations with Russia, preventing the improvement of the EU-Russian relations and supporting American interests in the region.

The claim that the new EU member states somehow escalate tensions with Russia and prevent the improvement of the EU-Russian relations is ungrounded.