This thesis was circulated on social networks, in particular on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric. The reports say that the International Monetary Fund is allegedly demanding that Ukraine completely eliminate subsidies for some Ukrainians and leave only minimal assistance. The authors add to the reports that Ukrainians should forget about social payments because Zelenskyi “surrenders Ukraine” and does not care about his people. The authors refer to the IMF resolution on the Extended Financing for Ukraine  program. This is manipulation.

The case was noticed by StopFake project fact-checkers, who found out that in March 2023, the IMF Board of Directors approved a new four-year extended financing program for Ukraine in the amount of $15.6 billion. The program includes implementation points in Ukraine to strengthen control over the distribution of funds and reduce the number of possible cases of corruption. Among these points is, for example, the reorganization of the Bureau of Economic Security of Ukraine. Actually, the IMF provided support to Ukraine on the condition that the Ukrainian government will fulfill its obligations on reforms and public administration measures. However, we are not talking about any abolition of subsidies or social payments, since the propagandists distorted the context of the main provisions of the project.

The fact-checkers also explain that the IMF Program provides for a gradual increase in gas and electricity tariffs to ensure the sustainability of the energy sector. Meanwhile, Maksym Samoiliuk, an economist at the Center for Economic Strategy, notes that this is a necessary step in a war.

By spreading such a message, propagandists want to feed the narrative that Ukraine is allegedly uninhabitable due to a lack of electricity or high utility prices. Thus, the authors want to sow panic among Ukrainians in order to destabilize moods and create a feeling that “nothing will change”. However, Russia does not take into account the fact that it was it who invaded the territory of Ukraine destroying our infrastructure, killing civilians and hindering peaceful life.

Propaganda uses the tactic of “relocation” to create permanent associations in the audience with certain symbols or constant expressions. They can be both positive and cause approval, and negative to discredit certain people, communities or phenomena.

Soviet and later Russian propaganda never used the term “Warrior of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army”, but called them “Bandera”. This word in the USSR and Russia has a strong association with bandits and Nazi collaborators. The red and black flag of the OUN and UPA has the same negative connotation for Russian propaganda, for the patriots of Ukraine it is a symbol of will, inflexibility and liberation struggle against any foreign invaders.

During the full-scale war of 2022-2023, Russian propaganda often prefers to call UAF soldiers “Nazis”, “militants”, “mercenaries” and so on. Thus, there is a movement from the soldiers of the regular army of an independent state to irregular gangs of various rabble. In order to avoid the terrible word “war” to denote a full-scale invasion of Ukraine and to call it, if not positively, then at least neutrally, the Putin authorities came up with the ludicrous phrase “special military operation”.

Russian propaganda is also trying to use supposedly positive symbols to increase support and justify aggression against Ukraine. The so-called St. George ribbon has been a military symbol of Russia since the 18th century, meaning military glory and valor. It retained its significance even in the Soviet Union and became one of the symbols of victory. In modern Russia, the St. George Ribbon is widespread and popular, since it is not associated with the communist regime of the USSR, which has a very ambiguous attitude inside the country, despite the fact that the Soviet past actively serves Russian propaganda.

Another symbol is the so-called “victory flag”, which Russian propaganda sacralized as part of the hyperbolization of Russia’s role in the victory over Nazism and made it one of the key elements of the “victory”, which is the cornerstone of the modern state ideology of “racism”.

Such information was disseminated in social networks, including the Georgian segment of Facebook. Reports say Zelenskyi has renounced NATO membership, saying he no longer wants to pressure Western officials. The authors of the messages convince readers that Zelenskyi was making concessions to Russia. They also refer to France 24 material. This is manipulation.

The fact-checkers of the Myth Detector project drew attention to the case, who found that Zelenskyi did indeed say that he would not insist on joining NATO, although he did not indicate that this was because of Russia and pressure on him. The authors of the messages simply distorted the context of the material, which does not even indicate that Volodymyr Zelenskyi is making concessions.

In the material itself, journalists wrote that in the context of NATO membership, Zelenskyi said that he did not want to be the president of a “begging country on its knees”. That is, there are no concessions to Russia, Zelenskyi only said that he would not try to whine about membership and would not insist.

Such information was disseminated in social networks, in particular, on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric. Reports say that the Ministry of Health has issued a memo on radiation hazards. The document lists precautions and recommendations in the event of a radiation hazard in Khmelnytskyi and its environs.

Specialists of the Center for Countering Disinformation reviewed this case and found that the document does not exist. Fact-checkers turned to the Ministry of Health for a comment, where they were told that they did not create any recommendations on the radiation hazard in Khmelnytskyi. In addition, on the website of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine there are also no monuments with a mention of the radiation hazard in the Khmelnytskyi region.

In addition, the fact-checkers found out that photos with a fake attraction were distributed only in the Russian segment of social networks.

Let us remind you that this “memo” refers to a series of fakes about the so-called radiation hazard that was “approaching” on the territory of the Khmelnytskyi or Ternopil regions. Propagandists convinced that cities had leaked dangerous substances and radiation. Thus, the authors seek to destabilize the mood of Ukrainians and once again intimidate them with “nuclear bombings” by Russia. We recall that earlier analysts of Detector Media also investigated the case related to “nuclear weapons” in Ukraine. We analyzed the message where the propagandists claimed that the Ukrainian military was using banned weapons with a high content of uranium.

This thesis was circulated on social networks, in particular on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric. Reports say that draft law No. 7114, allegedly declaring a state of war, registered on February 24, 2022, has disappeared from the website of the Verkhovna Rada. The authors argue that mobilization is illegal. They add a screenshot to messages that show a citizen's request for public information. In response to a request, the Verkhovna Rada stated that the draft law No. 7114 was not in the database.

The fact-checkers of the VoxCheck project drew attention to the case, and they found that Volodymyr Zelenskyi submitted the draft law “On declaring a state of war” for consideration by the Verkhovna Rada on February 24, 2022, and it was indeed not approved. However, this does not mean that we are not at war. For example, back in March 2022, Deputy Minister of Defense of Ukraine Hanna Maliar explained that it was not necessary to adopt a special law or decree declaring war. She cited Article 3 of the UN Resolution “On Aggression” of 1974 and stressed that an invasion or attack by the armed forces of a state on the territory of another state, bombardment or blockade of ports is qualified as an act of aggression.

In addition, after the start of Russia's full-scale aggression, Volodymyr Zelenskyi issued a decree “On the introduction of martial law in Ukraine”, adopted on February 24 by the Verkhovna Rada. This document empowers military administrations to assist in the organization of mobilization and communicate to the population the order of the military commissar to announce mobilization.

By spreading this message, Russian propaganda wants to prove that, as they say, the war is staged in Ukraine, but in general the state of war has not been declared. Like, there is no war, and mobilization is also impossible. Thus, propagandists deliberately hide the fact of a full-scale invasion of the territory of Ukraine.

This thesis was circulated on social networks, in particular on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric. The reports say that the Poles seem to accuse the Ukrainian refugees of manifestations of Nazism. They say that anti-Ukrainian billboards have appeared in many Polish cities, and rallies against Poland's involvement in the war in Ukraine are increasingly taking place in Warsaw. The authors refer to the publication Myśl Polska. It is not true.

The fact-checkers of the VoxCheck project investigated this case and found that such theses are unfounded and have no evidence. As they explain, Myśl Polska, referred to by the pro-Russian media, consistently spreads pro-Kremlin rhetoric. For example, in their materials, the authors of Myśl Polska accuse the West, and not Russia, of “unleashing” a war in Ukraine. That is, the likely “material” about the anti-Ukrainian sentiment rally may include a number of fakes and manipulations. At the same time, fact-checkers add that the Polish media do not have any mention of billboards with anti-Ukrainian appeals or mass rallies against Ukraine. They are convinced that this is a stuffing of propagandists.

By spreading this fake, the authors seek to demonize Ukrainian refugees and show that Europe does not support Ukraine and Ukrainians in general. Thus, Russian propaganda is trying to present Ukrainian refugees as criminals or terrorists, as a cultural and economic threat to the EU, in order to reduce support for Ukraine. We mentioned this in our own investigation.