Disinfo: Zelenskyy's ruling is complete failure: Nazis feel well, Ukraine remains anti-Russian

Summary

Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s presidential ruling brought no fruits. Everything he promised in his presidential campaign translated in the continuation of Poroshenko’s policies. For instance, Zelenskyy promised to protect the Russian language, but Nazis continue feeling well in Ukraine. Published audio files of Poroshenko’s negotiations with former US State Secretary John Kerry and former vice president Joe Biden proved once again that Ukraine is under strong external governance. Oversees curators have planned Ukraine’s role as anti-Russian.

Disproof

Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narratives about Nazi and Russophobic Ukraine, Ukraine and its rulers as US / West's puppets. It also contains speculations about Joe Biden. The myth of Nazi-ruled Ukraine has been the cornerstone of Russian disinformation about the country since the very beginning of the 2013-14 Euromaidan protests, when it was used to discredit the pro-European popular uprising in Kyiv and, subsequently, the broader pro-Western shift in Ukraine's foreign policy. Far-right groups enjoyed a very limited presence during the Euromaidan itself and had poor results in the 2014 presidential and parliamentary elections. The "Right Sector" candidate received 0.7% of the vote in the May 2014 presidential elections, and the party received 1.8% of the vote in the October 2014 parliamentary elections. In the 2019 election cycle, far-right candidates fell short of the 5% minimum guaranteeing entry into parliament. Ukraine is a sovereign country. The US policy is centred on realising and strengthening a stable, democratic, prosperous and free Ukraine, more closely integrated into Europe and Euro-Atlantic structures. Russia is, in fact, violating territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine with continuous acts of aggression by the Russian armed forces, ongoing since February 2014. However, Ukraine has not forbidden contact between citizens of Ukraine and Russia, as well as sports, cultural, scientific or other exchanges. In 2018, Joe Biden himself publicly spoke about conversations with President Poroshenko regarding Ukraine's prosecutor-general. The mentioned sum of one billion dollars was not a personal payment, but rather the amount of US loan guarantees to Ukraine. There is no evidence to support the claims that international corruption or high treason occurred in this case. Read more about the leaked audio tapes containing edited fragments of a conversation between former US Vice President Joe Biden and former president of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko in the earlier disinformation case alleging that Joe Biden was personally profiteering in Ukraine. Read similar cases alleging that Ukrainian authorities are loyal to the demonstration of the swastika, that after Maidan, Ukraine was ruled by the Nazis, Nazis are in power in Ukraine, Ukrainian authorities introduce Nazi laws to oppress Russian speakers, and Ukraine is a Neo-Nazi state.

publication/media

  • Reported in: Issue 200
  • DATE OF PUBLICATION: 30/05/2020
  • Outlet language(s) Russian
  • Countries and/or Regions discussed in the disinformation: US, Ukraine, Russia
  • Keywords: Volodymyr Zelensky, Anti-Russian, Russian language, Puppets, Joe Biden, Conspiracy theory, Petro Poroshenko, Nazi/Fascist
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Disinfo: US sees Ukraine as air corridor for nuclear strike in Crimea

The US military views Ukraine as an air corridor for a nuclear strike on Crimea. In the event of a conflict between Washington and Moscow, Ukraine will automatically become one of the priority goals.

Disproof

Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative undermining the statehood of Ukraine and US presence in Europe. The story came after US and Ukrainian jets "teamed up" for flights in Ukrainian airspace. According to Air Force Command of Ukrainian Armed Forces, Ukrainian pilots have picked up the baton from Polish pilots. This event itself is planned to achieve interoperability between NATO countries and key Allied partners. See more examples of disinformation messages alleging that Ukraine is a colony of IMF and George Soros, Ukraine is run by pro-EU oligarchic Nazis, supported by the US, US embassy controls decisions taken in Ukraine.

Disinfo: COVID-19 came from a laboratory

[…] the Corona-virus came from a laboratory. But at this point, you have to drive on sight. It’s only a conspiracy theory if it’s spread by conspiracy theorists and their media. But if mainstream media reported about the fact that the virus was made in a lab, then it would be no longer conspiracy.

Disproof

A recurring conspiracy theory that echoes pro-Kremlin disinformation about the artificial creation of COVID-19. There is no evidence that the coronavirus (COVID-19) was created in laboratories. COVID-19 comes from a family of viruses that include the common cold and viruses such as SARS and MERS. Coronaviruses are known to circulate in mammals and birds, and scientists have already suggested that COVID-19 originally came from bats. One of the previous coronaviruses that caused severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS, spread from bats to civet cats to humans. A group of 27 prominent public health scientists have condemned rumours and conspiracy theories about the origin of the coronavirus outbreak: "We stand together to strongly condemn conspiracy theories suggesting that COVID-19 does not have a natural origin." The authors of The Lancet statement note that scientists from several countries who have studied SARS-CoV-2, “overwhelmingly conclude that this coronavirus originated in wildlife," just like many other viruses that have recently emerged in humans. "Conspiracy theories do nothing but create fear, rumours and prejudice that jeopardise our global collaboration in the fight against this virus," the statement says.

Disinfo: US military biological laboratories encircle Russia

US military biological laboratories encircle Russia. US military biological activities can be observed all over the world, and also on Russian borders. Moscow has long been concerned about the biological security in neighbouring countries. In Kazakhstan, Armenia and Tajikistan, the Americans created a network of biological laboratories. The Russian authorities have many questions particularly about the Lugar Centre in Georgia. (…) Journalists and bloggers wrote seriously that the Americans had deliberately allowed the virus to spread. This was allegedly to test the efficiency of biological weapons under development in the lab (in Kazakhstan). (…) Experts agree that the post-Soviet states, with their willingness to accept foreign assistance, may lose control of the epidemiological situation. This could have serious consequences. In times of pandemics such as at present, laboratories of this kind are increasingly coming into focus because they provide worrying suspicions.

Disproof

A recurring pro-Kremlin narrative about the development of biological weapons by the United States. The conspiracy about US biolabs in countries bordering Russia aiming to encircle Moscow and spread infectious diseases is a part of a years-long disinformation campaign led by the Kremlin. There is no evidence to claim that the US is developing biological weapons. There is also no evidence to support the claim that partnering biolabs under the agreement have become epicentres for the spread of infectious diseases or have been used to attack populations. Contrary to the claims of the pro-Kremlin media, the Richard Lugar Centre for Public Health Research in Tbilisi, Georgia, is a facility of the National Centre for Disease Control and Public Health (NCDC). The Lugar centre is a top-tiered institution in NCDC’s laboratory network and serves as a reference laboratory for Georgia’s public health system. In no case has this laboratory designed, redesigned or built biological weapons. Read more about the Lugar lab on Myth Detector. See related disinformation cases alleging that China and Russia are worried about in-transparent US biological laboratories on Russia’s borders and that the Pentagon creates biological laboratories around the world to develop “combat” viruses.