Spilnota Detector Media
Detector Media collects and documents real-time chronicles of the Kremlin disinformation about the Russian invasion. Ukraine for decades has been suffering from Kremlin disinformation. Here we document all narratives, messages, and tactics, which Russia is using from February 17th, 2022. Reminder: the increasing of shelling and fighting by militants happened on the 17th of February 2022 on the territory of Ukraine. Russian propaganda blames Ukraine for these actions.

On 27 July, on the 884th day of the full-scale war, our editorial office recorded:

2288
Fake
716
Manipulation
674
Message
476
Disclosure
Русскій фейк, іді на***!

Fake The captain of the ship that crashed into a bridge in Baltimore (USA) was allegedly a citizen of Ukraine

Russian telegram channels are disseminating information that the captain of the Dali container ship, which crashed into a bridge in Baltimore, America on March 26, 2024, was allegedly a citizen of Ukraine.

In fact, this information is not true, according to experts on the VoxCheck project. The Ukrainian was not operating the vessel at the time of the collision.

Shipping company Synergy Marine Group, which operates the Dali, said there were 22 crew members on board, all of them of Indian origin. The company also confirmed to independent fact-checkers from the Associated Press that both captains of the container ship were US citizens.

While passing the bridge, the ship lost control. However, the collision was not intentional, but happened accidentally, as reported by US President Joe Biden. Maritime industry experts say the likely cause of the collision could have been crew error or a malfunction of the ship's control mechanisms.

Russian propaganda is once again trying to blame Ukraine for the world’s troubles. Previously, we refuted the information that the “Prague shooter” allegedly turned out to be Ukrainian.

Fake The French President is allegedly being forced to escalate the Russian-Ukrainian war by blackmailing him

Pro-Russian resources are distributing a “video report” allegedly from the Euronews  channel that French President Emmanuel Macron is being threatened to force an escalation of the Russian-Ukrainian war. Citing Bellingcat journalists, the authors report that Macron is being “blackmailed with an intimate video”.

However, this is actually fake. Neither Euronews nor Bellingcat published such a video report. This was reported by specialists from the VoxCheck project. There is no news on the Euronews and Bellingcat websites about how the French President is being blackmailed.

In the Euronews “report” all the footage is taken from open sources. So, if you check the first frames from the video in a reverse search, it turns out that they were taken on March 15, 2024 during the meeting of the leaders of France, Germany and Poland - Macron, Scholz and Tusk - in Berlin.

Another shot of Macron was taken from his 60 minutes interview in 2022.

In addition, the fake report also quotes French political scientist Olivier Paquet as allegedly confirming that American intelligence regularly uses blackmail against other politicians. However, the political scientist did not make such a statement - at least, it is not in open sources.

Bellingcat previously denied that its investigators were mentioned in another fake video that was passed off as a BBC report. Using the logos of the world's leading media (Euronews, Politico, Reuters), such fakes about Ukraine or the West are regularly created. By distributing this particular fake video, Russian propaganda is trying to minimize international support for Ukraine in the war against Russia. Previously, we refuted information that Euronews allegedly showed a story that the statement of the Ukrainian Embassy in France angered French farmers.

Disclosure A video has appeared on the network that should discredit and disrupt the mobilization process in Ukraine

Russian propagandists are distributing a video about the everyday life of two young Ukrainians: one is relaxing, having fun with girls, drinking alcohol and drugs, while the other is fighting.

Russian propaganda is trying to undermine the authority of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, as well as sow discord in Ukrainian society. The Center for Countering Disinformation at the National Security and Defense Council writes about this.

The authors of the video staged “two realities” of Ukrainians, deliberately manipulating sensitive topics for the Ukrainian people in order to attract attention and provoke conflict. However, Russian propagandists ignore the fact that Ukrainians enlist in the military not for popularity and “luxury conditions”, but to protect their country and future.

This manipulative video appeared against the backdrop of public discussions of the Law of Ukraine “On mobilization preparation and mobilization”. More materials on this topic can be found here.

Fake Ukraine allegedly planned a terrorist attack in Crocus

Russian media are disseminating information that a Member of the European Parliament from the Dutch right-wing party Forum for Democracy, Marcel de Graaf, said that the terrorist attack at Crocus City Holly was organized and paid for by Ukraine.

In fact, behind the terrorist attack in the Crocus City Holi near Moscow is the Islamic State Khorasan group, which took full responsibility for the attack. This has already been confirmed by US Presidential National Security Adviser John Kirby.

As for Marcel de Graaf, the Dutch politician accuses Ukraine without providing any evidence. In addition, he is an open Russophile and a supporter of Putin. Graaf also advocated stopping aid to Ukraine and lifting sanctions from the aggressor country. They write about this in the Center for Strategic Communications and Security at Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine.

Propaganda continues to spread fake news about the terrorist attack. The head of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Moscow Region, Kyrylo Budanov, noted that the Kremlin had already changed the versions of events at the Crocus City Holi near Moscow three times, trying to somehow link the so-called “Ukrainian trace” to the terrorist attack. It is obvious that Russian propaganda also attracts European lobbyists with a pro-Kremlin position. In addition, in order to blame Ukraine, the Kremlin launched a discredit campaign using bots.

• Read also: The Russian NTV channel showed a fake video where the Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine “confirmed the involvement of the Kyiv regime” in the terrorist attack at Crocus City Holi (ADDED).

Fake Some Ukrainians are allegedly being deported due to mass protests in Europe

A screenshot from the supposedly official website of the EU Delegation to Ukraine is being circulated online, containing information about the “deportation of 830,000 Ukrainians to resolve the conflict”. The authors of the “news” report that lists of citizens subject to deportation have already been compiled, so they invite you to go to the telegram bot to familiarize yourself with them.

In fact, this information is fake, writes the Center for Countering Disinformation at the National Security and Defense Council. There is no publication of similar content on the official website of the EU Delegation to Ukraine.

Probably, such content is distributed to increase the reach of anonymous telegram channels to which links lead. In addition, the creators of the fake seek to destabilize the situation in Europe and make Ukrainian refugees object to their future in EU countries. Previously, we denied information that German citizens allegedly advocate the forced extradition of Ukrainian refugees from the country.

Orest Slyvenko, Artur Koldomasov, Vitalii Mykhailiv, Oleksandra Kotenko, Oleksandr Siedin, Kostiantyn Zadyraka, and Oleksiy Pivtorak are collaborating on this chronicle. Lesia Bidochko serves as the project coordinator, while Ksenia Ilyuk is the author of the project.