Propagandists are trying to adapt their messages to audiences in different states. One of the newest attempts at such adaptation is the conspiracy theory about Ukropolin. It is being promoted to a Polish audience.

According to this conspiracy theory, the Polish government is preparing the Poles for the “absorption” of Poland by Ukraine and the emergence of the “Ukropolin” state.

“Ukrpolin” is an evolution of the “Polin” project, a variation of the so-called world Jewish conspiracy. The history of the conspiracy theory about Polina dates back to 1989. Then, in the first after 1945 elections in Poland, supporters of the Solidarity trade union came to power. Conspiracy theorists, however, decided that “Polin” had arisen, a state led by Germany and Israel (Polin is the Jewish name for Poland). Polina conspiracy theorists also believe that the POLIN Jewish History Museum is involved in this process.

In the case of Ukropolin, propagandists scare the Poles with the loss of their statehood. To do this, they take the news out of context or come up with evidence of the gradual absorption of Polish space by Ukrainians. For example, they publish an unknown list of first-year students of a technical school specializing in “automobile technician”, where only two Polish names and surnames are indicated, and all the rest are Ukrainian.

“Two Poles and other Ukrainians in the first year of an automotive technical school? Is it still Poland or Ukropolin?” - note the authors of the message.

Using this conspiracy theory, the Russians are trying to quarrel with the Poles among themselves. They mention “Ukrpolin” in any context. For example, here is how a Polish pro-Russian telegram channel presented a meeting between the leader of the United Left of Poland, Robert Biedron, and the then Prime Minister of Finland, Sanna Marin, in April 2023, about free abortions for Poles in Finland:

“Superrrr! We will kill more Poles and do it voluntarily, the most important thing is to kill them as much as possible, send them to war like cannon fodder, then make women disappointed, dress openly and go right and left, and then we will finance their abortions, and in the end we will take their country and make Ukropolin ... 

Probably, the Russians are trying to influence the perception of Ukraine by the Poles with such inventions and reduce the level of assistance to Ukraine from Poland. Currently, the level of support for Ukraine by the Polish society remains the highest among European countries. Therefore, in order to change this, the Poles are trying to cause fear for their country and skepticism towards the Ukrainians. Like, there are already so many Ukrainians in Poland that Poland is gradually turning into another region of Ukraine. This is yet another example of how conspiracy theories can deepen social divisions and fuel hatred against ethnic groups.

In the Russian segment of Facebook and TikTok, a video allegedly from a protest in Odesa was distributed. People went to the rally allegedly to demand “Ukraine without Zelenskyi”. It is not true.

The case was investigated by the MythDetector project fact-checker. They found that the people in the video did not demand Zelenskyi's resignation, but took to the action against the allocation of funds from the budget for the repair of the Kyiv District Court and the Theater for Young Spectators. People gathered for the action in Odesa for several days in a row, starting from August 28. On September 2, they came out with posters “First the Armed Forces of Ukraine, then everything else”, “My taxes for the Armed Forces of Ukraine”, “The Armed Forces of Ukraine in the first place”. The Facebook users themselves who shared this video are posting posts broadcasting Kremlin narratives.

Thus, the Russian propaganda is trying to spread the opinion that Ukrainians do not support Volodymyr Zelenskyi, but rather demand his resignation. Like, they are dissatisfied with the president of the country and the decisions they make. Earlier, we talked about the manipulation that in Polish online stores Zelenskyi's book is sold in the section about the Nazis.

On September 6, 2023, the Russian military launched a missile attack on a market in the city of Kostiantynivka, Donetsk region. As a result of the attack by the Russians, 16 people were killed, 28 more were injured, but the number of victims may vary. This was announced by Volodymyr Zelenskyi on the official page on the Telegram.

Russian propagandists and pro-Kremlin telegram channels accuse Ukraine of shelling the center of Kostiantynivka. Allegedly, during the operation of air defense, the rocket flew in an unplanned trajectory or shot down something in the sky that fell on the market. Russian propaganda uses the tactics of reflection and transfers responsibility to the victim of the crimes of the Russians. After the attack on the house in Dnipro on January 14, 2023, Russian propagandists also tried to whitewash the Russians and blamed the Ukrainian military for the tragedy.

On the fact of the shelling by Russian troops, the prosecutor's office opened criminal proceedings under article 438 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (violation of the laws and customs of war).

The Kremlin media are spreading information that the Minister of Defense of Ukraine Oleksii Reznikov was removed from his post, allegedly due to the fact that “the conflict with Russia dragged on”. Russian propaganda refers to an article in The New York Times. It is not true.

The fact-checkers of the StopFake project drew attention to the case. After analyzing the New York Times article cited by Russian propagandists, they came to the conclusion that the publication did not indicate this reason as the key reason for the dismissal of Oleksii  Reznikov. “The fate of Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov has become the subject of growing speculation in Ukraine as financial irregularities at the ministry became known and the government launched several investigations into official corruption”, the NYT article says. They also add that as the war dragged on, there was a need for new leadership that could solve the accumulating problems.

Thus, Russian propaganda discredits the Ukrainian authorities and tries to shift the responsibility to Ukraine - they say, it is to blame for the duration of the war that Russia started. Russian propaganda uses the “most guilty” tactics.

In the social network X, formerly known as Twitter, the Russian segment of Facebook, TikTok and the social network VKontakte banned in Ukraine, anonymous telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric are disseminating an alleged BBC News report about the head of the Wagner group. The video with footage from the crash site and photographs of Pryhozhyn contains the following text: “An Air Force source refutes the information about the death of the owner of the Wagner group. According to the information, the plane crash was staged by the Russian authorities, and Yevhenii Pryhozhyn is alive”. It's fake.

The case was studied by Reuters fact-checkers. Such a video was not distributed on the official pages of the BBC in the social network X, in the accounts of the broadcaster in English on Instagram and Facebook. In a comment to Reuters fact-checkers, a BBC spokesman said: “We are aware of this fake video and our lawyers are urgently investigating. In a world where disinformation is on the rise, we encourage everyone to check links and URLs to make sure they're getting news from a trusted source”.

Russian propaganda is trying to fuel the conspiracy theory that Pryhozhyn is actually alive and that his death was staged. The Russians need such mythologization in order to glorify the leader of the Wagner group, to raise the morale of the Russians and to absolve themselves of responsibility for the likely downing of the plane. Detector Media talked about messages spread by Russian propagandists, authors of anonymous telegram channels and pro-Kremlin media after the death of Wagner leader Yevhenii Pryhozhyn.

Anonymous telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric spread information that the Rozhyshche hospital in the Volyn region allegedly received an order to send more than 50 medical workers to the front. Russian propaganda refers to the Ukrainian media. It is not true.

The case was investigated by fact-checkers of the Center for Countering Disinformation. They found that in one of the hospitals in Volyn they plan to reduce staff due to lack of funding and because of this, two departments will be closed. However, there is no mention of sending doctors to the front or there is no corresponding order.

Thus, Russian propaganda is trying to sow panic among Ukrainians, they say, there are not enough people in the Ukrainian army, so hospitals receive orders to send doctors to the war zone. Earlier, we talked about the manipulation that in Ukraine they created a military uniform for pregnant women in order to send them to the front.