In the Czech segment of Telegram, the number of anonymous channels broadcasting pro-Russian rhetoric in Czech has increased. This was researched by analyst Josef Shlerka from the Czech project investigaci.cz. Detector Media outlined the main theses from his article and found out why it is so important for Russian propagandists to maintain influence in the Czech Republic.

Shlerka says that such Czech-language telegram channels usually repost content from foreign sources that are considered conspiratorial and inaccurate. They often repeat conspiracy narratives, such as the “rigged” elections in the United States in 2020 or that earthquakes in Turkey are man-made. Moreover, most of the publications coincide with the news of “Sputnik” being blocked in the EU.

In addition, these telegram channels tried to destabilize the Czech domestic political situation. For example, one of the most popular of them posted a fake video of the then-Czech presidential candidate Petr Pavel, where he allegedly talks about the need to go to war against Russia.

The researcher also divides them according to the genre of news reporting: one category tries to seriously provide information, while the other expresses its support for Russia as informally as possible. All these channels have one thing in common: they openly sympathize with Russia, repeating the narratives of its propaganda.

Some of these channels contain grammatical errors in their Czech messages. From this, the researcher concludes that the authors are probably not Czechs and use machine translation to create content. Most of these channels also do not reveal the identity of the message authors and use Czech bank accounts to raise funds to keep the channels running.

Thus, Russian propagandists want to sow doubt among the Czechs about the appropriateness of supporting Ukraine. Like, don't let the West rule you, support your state brothers. This is of particular importance if to consider the historical past of the Czech Republic and its connection with the Soviet Union.

Anonymous telegram channels spreading pro-Russian rhetoric publish information that the future generation of Ukrainians has already been lost. They say that even on television, the youngest Ukrainians are now being taught that air raid alerts are the norm of life, which you need to get used to. Such a reaction of propagandists was caused by the recent appearance of the Tiktoker Ihor Korchahin (PE teacher) on the air of the “Breakfast with 1 + 1” program with a live performance of his children's movement “Victory is soon”.

In the official YouTube release of the track, it is stated that this is a children's song. The text of the track tells about the importance of rest during an air raid alert, the order of actions necessary during the signal, the list of objects that are important to take to a shelter. The song also mentions the Armed Forces of Ukraine: “I believe in the Armed Forces of Ukraine, which means victory is coming soon”. On the air of the 1 + 1 TV channel, it was presented along with the exercises, which helps to remember the rules of civil safety.

Thus, Russian propagandists want to demoralize Ukrainian society. Like, Ukrainians need to immediately stop the war and surrender, because their children are turned into martyrs and their childhood is taken away from them. In addition, by mocking children's movements, they want to shift the responsibility for the actions of the aggressor onto the victim of aggression. However, the reason that Ukrainian children listen to songs about air raids is the war between Russia and Ukraine.

Anonymous telegram channels spreading pro-Russian rhetoric publish information that it is currently impossible to buy antidepressants in Ukraine due to their shortage. Like, upon returning from the front, the Ukrainian military “swept away” them from pharmacies. It's fake.

When looking for antidepressants in Ukrainian pharmacies, even online, you can find the exact addresses of pharmacies where you can buy them at the moment. This is not about the presence of several items, but about a wide selection of antidepressants. Moreover, even if such a deficit did occur, it is impossible to confirm whether it was the military that provoked it or not. Civilians living in the stress of war can also buy these drugs, and antidepressants are even on the list of drugs provided under the government's “Affordable Medicines” program.

Thus, Russian propagandists want to discredit the Ukrainian Armed Forces and demoralize Ukrainian society. They say that allegedly the Ukrainian soldiers cannot withstand the war, which means that they must give up and start negotiating.

In fact, the topic of mental health for both military and civilians during the war is quite important. However, Russian propaganda stigmatizes it. It seems that taking care of one’s mental health is the business of “weaklings”. However, the trauma of wartime experiences can interfere with a return to normal life.

Anonymous telegram channels spreading pro-Russian rhetoric publish information that the President of Ukraine, by his decree, created “information hubs for Ukrainian citizens to find work”, taking into account the “sharp increase in unemployment”. It's fake.

Analysts of the VoxCheck project drew attention to it. They found out that the screenshot used by the authors of such messages is a fake. In particular, it contains the Decree of the President of Ukraine No. 127/2023. It can be easily found on the website of the Office of the President and you can see that in fact it concerns the appointment of O.Kamyshin as an adviser to the President of Ukraine. In addition, there are no decrees with information about “information hubs” on the site at all.

Thus, the authors of telegram channels are trying to increase the number of their subscribers by misleading users. However, Russian propagandists also took advantage of this, presenting it as evidence of an economic disaster in Ukraine. Like, everything is so bad that even the government is forced to send people to work.

Propagandists actively compare the protests in Paris with the Euromaidan, calling them “Maidan 2.0”. This is manipulation.

The protest actions in Paris are inappropriate to compare with the Euromaidan, because they have other goals. If the main goal of Euromaidan from the very beginning was the European integration of Ukraine, the protesters in Paris are fighting against raising the retirement age announced by the state. In addition, this is not the first time the French have protested precisely against this decision.

Thus, propagandists are trying to devalue the significance of the Euromaidan and its results. Like, the protest never leads to anything good, but only to destabilization and devastation. However, such rhetoric only shows the propagandists' fear of the changes that protest can bring. In their case, it can force them out of public space. Detector Media has already written about a similar attempt to equate the protests in Georgia with the Euromaidan.

On the night of March 18, Russian President Volodymyr Putin arrived in the temporarily occupied Mariupol, where he allegedly talked with local residents and followed the progress of restoration work in the city destroyed by Russia. One of the “residents” (in fact, one cannot establish for sure whether a woman lives in Mariupol now or she lived during the blockade of the city) addresses Putin, saying that she lives in “a piece of paradise”, which is now Mariupol thanks to the Russians.

In fact, it is impossible to find out whether the so-called local residents in Mariupol were not there to meet with Putin, his proxies or representatives of the Russian special services. In addition, in some Russian media, a moment was recorded where, against the background of a conversation about a “piece of paradise” and the “restoration” of Mariupol, shouts are heard: “This is all a show-off!”, which surprised the participants in the dialogue. But even if one skips this, it is clear that Russia is trying to create an illusion of success and development of the temporarily occupied territories, the source of which is Russia.

Russia is trying to substitute the concept in this case, since Mariupol is a city completely destroyed by Russian troops, turning it into hell. Moreover, the decision to destroy civilian infrastructure is well calculated and not accidental - this is a strategy Russian troops constantly resort to in their military campaigns.

Such “recovery” projects often divert attention from Russia's own infrastructural problems. In particular, in many cities you can find buildings in disrepair, in which there is no access to water supply and heating, which is very far from a “piece of paradise”. Instead of working on this, Russia is actually building poor-quality temporary infrastructure for the sake of a good picture, which serves more as a decoration. Russia resorted to such actions even during preparations for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. When it comes to explaining to the locals why their life is definitely not a “piece of paradise” even though there is no constant shelling, the Russian authorities on the ground will blame Ukraine and the “collective West”. If Russia had not waged war against Ukraine and not destroyed its infrastructure, the money spent on the “restoration” of the temporarily occupied territories could have been spent on improving the living standards of the inhabitants of the Russian hinterland.

That is, by calling Mariupol a piece of paradise, Russian propaganda is substituting the concept. After all, it was Russia that captured a quite successful Ukrainian city and turned it into a hell in which thousands of people died. And if it had not been for Russia, Mariupol would not have had to be reconstructed.

The propagandists stepped up their support for the Chinese government and its leader Xi Jinping after a visit to Moscow. Allegedly, China has a specific plan for reconciliation between Russia and Ukraine, and it is the best possible solution to the situation. Detector Media analyzed the materials of the Russian media and identified several narratives regarding the role of China in the war against Ukraine.

1. China must make a revolution in Ukraine, but for this it must destroy the West with its military force.

Propagandists claim that there is no point in allegedly talking about peace with the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi, since he is a US puppet. In the United States, the alleged goal is not peace, but world rule, because for the security of the United States it should be dangerous in all other states. Thus, the propagandists are trying to devalue the Ukrainian government and the efforts of the West with the help of Ukraine. Like, anyone can decide the fate of Ukraine, except for the Ukrainians themselves, because they are not capable of it. In addition to this, the authors of such reports repeat Soviet narratives regarding the “external enemy” who wants to destroy the whole world and the “heroic” USSR, which “protects” the world from total catastrophe.

2. Negotiations with Russia on the initiative of China on a truce in Ukraine is a defeat for the United States. They will lose in this way to both China and Russia.

Propagandists once again attribute imaginary achievements to Russia. However, experience shows that China is using the war against Ukraine to its advantage and views Russia as one of its sides, while distancing itself from the war in the public arena. In addition, the authors of such reports argue that if China succeeds in realizing its peace plan, the internal disintegration of the United States will begin. In this case, we can talk about fiction and wishful thinking.

3. China's goal in mediation is a moral victory over the US

Propagandists are trying to devalue the West and its power by describing China's “peace plan” as the doctrine of a new world order, echoing Volodymyr Putin's “multipolar world” narratives. This, in their opinion, is the “trap for the United States”. In addition, Russian propaganda in this regard uses one of the main tactics of Soviet propaganda, putting pressure on the “moral decline” of the West and the “spiritual upsurge” of the USSR, and in this case, friendly communist China.

The experience of relatively recent military conflicts in the world shows that mediation is a delicate process that requires the readiness of the mediator country for flexibility and detailed work to resolve the conflict. It is too early to talk about China as a mediator - the fact of the presentation of a peace plan does not necessarily mean a readiness for such a role. Therefore, we are again dealing with the substitution of concepts in the performance of Russian propagandists.

Propagandists are allegedly spreading a quote from an American intelligence officer, where he reveals Poland's plan to destroy Ukrainian soldiers. They refer to an interview with retired US Marine Corps intelligence officer Scott Ritter for American journalist Stephen Gardner. Like, Poland deliberately transfers defective planes to the Armed Forces of Ukraine and turns Ukrainian soldiers into an easy target. It's fake.

Analysts of the StopFake project drew attention to the fake. They refuted Ritter's words about the “plan for the destruction of Ukrainian soldiers”: Poland is one of Ukraine's main partners in military assistance. The example with the supply of German Leopard 2 tanks and MiG-29 combat aircraft is a clear confirmation. In addition, analysts found an interview with Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki for Dziennik Gazeta Prawna, in which he said: “We help Ukraine, because our neighbor in the East determines how our future will look like”.

Talking about the personality of Scott Ritter, he is indeed a former US intelligence officer who served in it in the 1980s. Then (from 1991 to 1998) he worked as a UN weapons inspector in Iraq. But he was subsequently accused of pedophilia after trying to arrange a date with underage girls on the Internet (in all cases, the “girls” were police officers). On these charges, he was sentenced to two and a half years in prison. In 2014, he was released, but his “analytics” was in demand only from the Russian propaganda media. In particular, Ritter accused Ukraine of killings in Bucha, called Joe Biden a war criminal and claimed that Poland was trying to occupy the western regions of Ukraine.

Thus, propagandists use beneficial “experts” without due attention to their reputation. They nourish the narrative of the West, which wants “to destroy” Ukraine and Poland, which wants to take western Ukrainian lands for itself. Detector Media has already investigated this narrative and explained why it is dangerous for Ukrainians.

This information was disseminated by the Russian Ministry of Defense. The report says that Russia saved many lives by intercepting an American BBC US MQ-09 drone flying on March 14 over the Black Sea. It is not true.

The case was noticed by StopFake project fact-checkers, who found out that this type of drone could indeed carry missiles, but the MQ-9, which was on a mission in the Black Sea, was unarmed and did not pose any threat to Russian aircraft.

Fact-checkers also drew attention to a message stating that a US drone violated the borders of Russian airspace.

This message was spread by the Russian Ministry of Defense. They say that the U.S.-owned drone was found as part of a temporary established connection with the so-called “special airspace operation”. It is not true.

In fact, a US Air Force MQ-9 Reaper was flying in airspace over the Black Sea, which is not Russia's “inland sea”. In fact, the Black Sea is operated not only by Russia, but also by Ukraine, as well as by NATO member countries, and that is why the US drone, a member of the North Atlantic Alliance, has every right to be in international airspace over the Black Sea.

Fact-checkers drew attention to another fake, which says that Russian fighters did not come into contact with the MQ-9. Like, the drone went into uncontrolled flight with a loss of altitude and fell into the water due to sharp maneuvering. It is not true.

Russia did not indeed fire at the drone, but the fighters did make physical contact with the American UAV.

The US European Command said that the cause of the drone crash over the Black Sea was the “dangerous, unprofessional and reckless” actions of Russian pilots. To confirm their version, the US European Command posted a video from a submerged drone. The image shows a Russian SU-27 dropping fuel onto the drone before crashing into an MQ-9, damaging the propeller.