Pro-Kremlin media manipulated a quote from United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, reporting that the organization condemned "Zelensky's actions" regarding "Ukraine's attack" on its nuclear facility, writes StopFake. At a press conference in Tokyo on August 8, the UN Secretary-General did comment on the shelling of the nuclear power plant captured by the Russians. He said that the attacks on the station are suicide and must be stopped immediately. According to fact-checkers, Guterres did not make any statements regarding Ukraine's attack on his station. "Any attack on a nuclear plant is an act of suicide. I hope these attacks stop. At the same time, I hope that the IAEA will be able to gain access to the station and apply its competence," he emphasized. It will be recalled that on March 4, the Russians attacked the Zaporizhzhya NPP and shelled it, causing a fire. The US embassy called the Russian shelling a war crime. The occupier still controls the station. On August 1, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken stated that Russia uses the ZNPP as a "nuclear shield": they say, the Russian army has placed a military base there with the confidence that the Armed Forces of Ukraine will not fire on it. Instead, Russian propaganda systematically accuses Ukraine of striking the Zaporizhia NPP. As the Center for Combating Disinformation writes, in this way the occupiers intimidate the EU countries with a "new Chernobyl" and commit nuclear terror themselves. The Russians are deliberately firing at the ZNPP, creating a risk of violating radiation and fire safety standards and the operation of the plant. Also, the occupiers purposefully destroy the station's connections with the Ukrainian power system to leave the South of Ukraine without electricity. 

After the European Union blocked the Kremlin's main propaganda channels — RT and Sputnik — the occupiers found new ways to spread disinformation, writes the Center for Strategic Communications with reference to AR. NewsGuard, a New York-based disinformation research and monitoring firm, has identified 250 sites spreading Russian disinformation about the war. Some of the sites previously had no clear connection with the Russian Federation, some rebranded to disguise themselves, and some pretend to be independent think tanks or news agencies. They spread fakes that the Ukrainian army has staged deadly attacks against the Russian Federation, that Volodymyr Zelensky is faking his public appearance, that Ukrainian refugees are committing crimes in Germany and Poland, etc. RT and Sputnik's propaganda material is posted on YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, and Instagram from other accounts. RT video content can appear on social networks under a new brand and logo. 

One of the anonymous Telegram channels is developing the opinion that Poland is currently luring Ukrainian production and enterprises to itself. Allegedly, it has been absorbing the economy of Ukraine since 2014, luring workers. Referring to an anonymous source, the propagandists write that it is Poland that will collapse the EU and is already dictating the terms of the European Union.

Please note that the propagandists argue their position with the obvious fact of Poland's development under EU subsidies, and then contrast Ukraine as a weaker country because of its "maidans and wars". At the same time, the dubious and loud thesis about the absorption of the economy stands next to the obvious and well-known fact about wage earners. Such a manipulative technique — disguising one's messages as obvious facts — is a common practice of Russian propaganda. As well as a link to an anonymous source. The purpose of such a message is probably to influence the mood of Ukrainians, to make us and the Poles quarrel, and the Poles quarrel with the rest of the Europeans.

Anonymous Telegram channels relay messages from their "sources" about two possible scenarios for holding online referendums. According to him, the first option means a referendum in the occupied territories to secure precincts. According to the second, residents of 10 regions of Ukraine will also be involved in the referendum, allegedly to show the goal to which the Russian Federation is striving and will not stop until it is achieved. At the same time, the propagandists write that the position of the Ukrainian authorities - regarding not returning to negotiations in the event of referendums - is weak. 

Another fraudulent scheme, which is spreading in social networks and plays on people's difficult circumstances and the need for money, is revealed by the Nota Enota project. Fraudsters report that according to the adopted law, Ukrainians can get back VAT for three years, which can reach up to 90 thousand hryvnias of assistance. The condition is that the bank card must be checked. "After users click on the link, they are directed to a site where they enter their details and their payment card details. Accordingly, fraudsters gain access to accounts and steal people's money. In addition, people themselves give all the necessary information, thinking that they are filling out a form to receive funds," the post reads. "The Raccoon's Note" warns: that there is no such law; VAT is not refundable to individuals. In addition, information is distributed by a page called "Help Fund", which does not have a bluebird (check mark), which means it is not verified. The "round" number of 90,000 hryvnias was used to attract attention. In addition, fraudsters contradict themselves: they write either "law" or "decision". You can find out about real help and fill out an application on the E-support website. Information about assistance from international organizations is available on the website of the Ministry of Social Policy. 

Russian propaganda spreads information that, allegedly, because weapons were distributed to the population in the first months of the war, the level of crime, especially serious crimes - robberies and murders - has dropped unprecedentedly. According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, in six months the overall level of crime in Ukraine decreased by 25% compared to last year. Serious and especially serious crimes remained almost at the same level as in 2021, writes StopFake. The number of apartment thefts, robberies, and robberies decreased. This is confirmed by the statistics of the Prosecutor General's Office. The decrease in the level of general crime in the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine is explained by the mass migration of people within the country and abroad, the introduction of a curfew, and the coordination of the work of law enforcement officers and territorial defense. At the same time, the Ministry of Internal Affairs noted that the level of crime has increased in the territories with active hostilities. In addition, the number of crimes related to illegal trafficking of weapons and crimes committed with the use of weapons increased. 

Russian propaganda reported that Russian specialists have started the modernization of two turbines of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power station, and such modernization can increase the capacity of the hydroelectric power station by a third. It will be recalled that the occupiers seized the station in the first days of the invasion of the Kherson region. According to StopFake fact-checkers, the Russians will not be able to modernize the Kakhovskaya HPP, because, firstly, part of the necessary equipment is produced only in Ukraine or the countries of the European Union. Secondly, to install more powerful equipment, it is necessary to make changes to the station’s structure, and this can damage the reinforced concrete dam of the Kakhovskaya HPP. Such works will last at least two years and will give a 5 percent increase, commented the energy generating company "Ukrhydroenergo". Russian media also wrote that one of the turbines "failed, but this is not related to hostilities." "Ukrhydroenergo" denies: as a result of the fighting near Kherson, the power grid was damaged, which caused multiple short circuits and disabled part of the station's equipment