The population of Donbas, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson have a right to self-determination under the UN Charter, which makes the referendums in southern and eastern Ukraine legitimate, says Russia’s Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov. In fact, Russia violated the UN Declaration on the Principles of International Law by invading Ukraine, and the international community will not recognize the referendums.
After Vladimir Putin decreed the partial military mobilization, Russian state media launched a series of false narratives justifying the decision. Partial mobilization is presented as a step towards de-escalation, a measure necessary for diplomatic dialogue and the prevention of a nuclear disaster or a war on Russian territory.
The Russian army is not responsible for the Izium massacre, which was framed by the West or represents an act of provocation from Kyiv, which is killing Russian speakers in the Kharkiv region, a new Russian propaganda narrative reads. The narrative was launched after the Ukrainian army discovered mass graves in the Izium area with the remains of hundreds of people, some appearing to have been the victims of swift executions, as well as the rooms where civilians were tortured.
The Ukrainian Defense Ministry said it no longer trusts its Western partners, who don’t want peace in Ukraine, reads a propaganda narrative published by the Russian state media. Oleksii Reznikov’s statement was taken out of context. The Ukrainian official referred to a prospective multilateral peace agreement once Russia has surrendered and a constructive dialogue with the West.
The Polish Defense Ministry announced it would launch a war against Russia within the next 10 years, according to a propaganda narrative disseminated by the Russian government media. In fact, Poland’s Government adopted an endowment program also designed to increase the number of troops in the context of the war in Ukraine possibly spilling over into Poland’s territory.
Residents of the Zaporizhzhia region are waiting for Russia to liberate the cities of Mykolaiv, Kharkiv and Odesa, which have been oppressed by Ukrainian Nazis for the past decades, the pro-Kremlin media say. In fact, all these localities have been the target of Russian aggression and bombing, and the majority of Ukrainians – including the inhabitants of the Zaporizhzhia region – consider Russia an enemy.
According to the pro-Kremlin media, experts with the International Atomic Energy Agency have allegedly praised the Russian army for defending the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant from Ukrainian bombing. In reality, there is no report or statement by IAEA experts expressing this point of view anywhere, the source cited being, in fact, the pro-Russian separatist leader Yevhen Balytskyi.
The former US chief epidemiologist has publicly admitted that US laboratories in Ukraine were involved in the production of the coronavirus, according to media in Russia and in the self-proclaimed Luhansk republic. The so-called news is a fabrication: there is no statement by Anthony Fauci regarding the production of viruses or other biological weapons in Ukraine.
European Union Member States have created centers for training mercenaries and terrorists who will kill civilians in Donbas, reads a recent propaganda narrative promoted by the Russian government media. In fact, the EU doesn’t have any such centers on its territory. European Union Member States have repeatedly condemned international terrorism and have called on Russia to stop its armed aggression against Ukraine.
Due to Kyiv’s propaganda efforts in the last eight years, Ukrainians fail to understand that the Russian soldiers are there to liberate them, and mistakenly believe Russia is the occupier, according to false narratives promoted by Kremlin-linked media. In fact, Russia launched a conquest war, provoking the death of thousands of people and wide-reaching destruction.
The United States wants a nuclear disaster to happen at the Zaporizhzhia NPP in order to wipe out any evidence of their biological weapons labs, reads a false narrative disseminated by the Russian government media. In fact, no Western state wants to see a nuclear incident, all the more so as it might have a powerful global impact, whereas the laboratories manufacturing biological weapons in Ukraine are a fabrication of Russian propaganda.
EU Member States will ask Ukraine to surrender to Russia and will gradually side with Moscow, according to a false narrative widely disseminated by the Russian media, which references a text published in Foreign Affairs by the former adviser to the head of European diplomacy. In fact, the words of the Italian expert are taken out of context, and the article where she supports Ukraine is misrepresented as pro-Russian.
According to a false narrative carried by the Russian state media, Ukraine's crime rate has tripled because of Kiev's decision to arm the population. In reality, against the background of the country's depopulation and traffic restrictions, the crime rate has dropped. Moreover, not the entire population has been armed, only some volunteer units have been set up.
After the Ukrainian authorities fled Kherson, the new military-civilian administration had to take over power to annex the region to Russia and protect the Ukrainian language and culture, the Russian press writes, citing the self-proclaimed leader Kirill Stremousov. In reality, the authorities in Kherson were evacuated following the invasion of Ukraine by the Russian army, which bombards Ukrainian territories daily.
The agreement signed in Istanbul regarding the export of Ukrainian grain means the UN and Turkey recognize Russia’s right to control Ukraine’s maritime ports, according to propaganda narratives disseminated by the Russian media. In fact, the agreements signed in Istanbul do not include any such provisions, and Moscow has violated the agreements by bombing the port of Odessa.
Ukraine could cause a nuclear disaster if it keeps bombing the Zaporizhzhia power plant as ordered by the US, according to a propaganda narrative released by Russia's Foreign Ministry and distributed by the state media. In reality, Russia is placing weapons and military equipment on the plant’s site, endangering the nuclear security of Europe.
At least 15 Ukrainian generals were killed following a single tactical airstrike, the Russian government media writes. According to the narrative, the Russian missile allegedly hit the House of Officers in downtown Vinnytsia, just as the Ukrainian generals were holding a briefing on the counter-offensive in Donbas. In fact, the airstrike killed 23 civilians, including children. The House of Officers center, which is not a military objective, was supposed to host a charity concert.
The Ukrainian region of Zaporizhzhia has established international contacts with at least 15 states, including EU members, writes the Russian state press, citing a separatist leader from Ukraine. In reality, EU states do not recognize Russia's occupation bodies in Ukraine as legitimate bodies of power, and personal sanctions have been introduced against Russian collaborators in Zaporizhzhia.
The Russian state press has taken out of context a statement by the former US Ambassador to Russia, Michael McFaul, and have disseminated a propaganda narrative, according to which American scholars support Putin's ideas about Ukraine. In reality, McFaul presented several opinion trends from the US and around the world on the history of Ukraine, and not on the current Russian-Ukrainian war.
The Russian state media claims, part of a propaganda narrative, that the Ukrainian refugees in Germany will be accommodated in the former Nazi concentration camp of Sachsenhausen. In reality, the former camp is now home to a memorial museum, and the images used to show the accommodation invitations for the Ukrainian refuges are fake.
The Russian state media, quoted by some publications in Romania, has disseminated a propaganda narrative, launched by the Foreign Intelligence Service in Russia, according to which Poland will work more actively with Hungary and Romania in order to take over Western Ukraine. In fact, Poland is one of the staunch supporters of Ukraine’s efforts to fend off the Russian invasion.
The leadership of the Kharkiv Oblast will support the inhabitants who have called in rather large numbers for the unification with the Russian Federation, the Russian government media writes. In fact, over 85% of the inhabitants of Eastern Ukraine have condemned the Russian aggression, and the people cited by Moscow media do not represent the legitimate authorities of Ukraine.
Romania will help Ukraine recapture Kherson by using the Ukrainian fighter jets on its territory, the Russian state media writes. In fact, Romania does not host any Ukrainian military aircraft, and Bucharest has shown no signs of considering getting involved in the war.
The international community will have to declare the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy a war criminal, according to a false narrative circulated by the Russian state media. In reality, the war crimes blamed on the Ukrainian president are either made up or were committed by Russian soldiers on Ukrainian territory.
Ukraine has tried to forcibly deport the inhabitants of the Luhansk region, and Russian-speakers in Lysychansk protested before the Ukrainian army, according to a new false narrative carried by the Russian media. The narrative was published against the background of Russia being accused of deporting Ukrainians and forcing millions of people to flee, while advancing its troops and bombing of civilian targets.
The EU will deport to Ukraine refugee men so they can be enrolled in the Ukrainian army, the Kremlin-affiliated media writes. In fact, deporting refugees to their country of origin is forbidden under international law, which means Ukrainian citizens who fled the war and came to the EU cannot be sent back.
The nationalist leader Stepan Bandera has been canonized, according to the Russian press, which is disseminating this propaganda narrative to prove that Ukrainian society is a Nazi one and must be further denazified by the Russian army. In reality, Bandera has not been canonized and there is no initiative in this regard.
Volodymyr Zelensky pays for Western weapons with Ukrainian museum exhibits, according to a new false narrative promoted by the Russian press and pro-Kremlin Telegram channels. In reality, museum exhibits have been evacuated from the east and south of the country to the western regions or taken from exhibition halls to shelters so as not to be destroyed by Russian bombing.
Ukrainians from Zaporozhye are volunteering to join a battalion to defend the region from the Ukrainian Armed Forces, according to Russian media. In reality, Russia is forcibly mobilizing Ukrainian civilians from the occupied localities in this region, in violation of international conventions, and the city of Zaporozhye is still under the control of the Ukrainian army.
According to Russian media, the Ukrainians are being forced to withdraw from Donbas following Moscow's “special operation” and are massacring Russian-speakers while fleeing. In reality, Ukrainian forces continue to resist, and Ukrainian leaders say they will fight for every town in Donbas to defend the local population, including Russian-speakers, from the Russian invaders.
The Russian media writes that NATO’s Secretary General has recommended Kyiv to concede a number of territories to Russia in the name of peace. In fact, Stoltenberg hailed Ukraine’s resistance and condemned Russia.
The Chinese delegation left the room during a speech by Zelensky, in protest of Ukraine's actions and to show support for Moscow’s “special operation”, writes the Russian press. In reality, the Chinese delegation listened carefully to the Ukrainian leader's speech and did not leave the conference room.
