The Russians have created a "Handbook for Ukrainian citizens on organizing resistance to the Kyiv puppet leadership," in which they advise to sabotage work in socially significant areas - in administrative positions, office workers, employees of government bodies, in the medical and educational fields, law enforcement activities, etc. It is reported by the HUR of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine.

The manual has 14 pages, which repeatedly use terminology that reinforces the propaganda of hatred towards everything Ukrainian: "Kyiv hunta," "puppet leadership," etc.

The Main Directorate of Intelligence the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine claims that the "tips" encourage people to promote the Russian language (pretending not to understand Ukrainian), slow down the pace of work of state organizations, send various incorrect requests to state structures, make mistakes in the documentation and use more materials, including the number of medical, than required.

Such a thesis is spread on Russian social networks and the Kremlin's propaganda media pages. The reports claim that panic has allegedly started in Europe after Gazprom announced a cut in gas supplies.

Propagandists draw such conclusions after reading columnist Jacob Paul's column for the Express publication. But it is manipulation. In fact, there is nothing in the article on the Express website that there is panic in Europe due to the reduction of Russian gas supplies. As StopFake writes, the author of the material describes Russia's current situation with "gas blackmail" and writes about the European Union's plan to reduce dependence on Russian energy carriers gradually. The article analyzes the case of Germany, which received 55% of its gas from Russia. Still, at the same time, the article discusses ways to get the country out of energy dependence.

The Russian media spread this thesis after the occupiers restored power lines between the Kherson region and Crimea, blown up in 2015 during the energy blockade of the occupied peninsula. Petro Kotin, president of the national energy generating company Energoatom, said that Ukrainian electricity, particularly from the temporarily occupied Zaporizhzhia NPP, does not reach occupied Crimea. "If there is a threat of stealing electricity from the Ukrainian power system or supplying it from the Zaporizhzhia NPP (to Crimea), appropriate measures will be taken in advance and will need to be carried out by our Armed Forces so that this never happens," he explained to Radio Svoboda. Kotin specified, "Crimea is connected to the Russian energy system; its frequency does not coincide with the Ukrainian one, so the automatic connection is impossible without additional expensive equipment."

In addition, Russian propaganda calls the restoration of power lines "an important step towards the economic integration" of the occupied territories of southern Ukraine in the Russian Federation. The representation of the President of Ukraine in Crimea reported that despite the statement of the occupiers about the readiness of Crimea to "become a transit region" for the supply of electricity to the captured territories of southern Ukraine, the situation would likely be the opposite. "The energy system of the temporarily occupied Crimean peninsula was never self-sufficient and always required the supply of electricity from other regions. It is extremely likely that in the conditions of the occupation of certain territories of southern Ukraine, particularly the city of Energodar and the Zaporizhzhia NPP, the restoration of high-voltage power lines between the Kherson region and the occupied Crimea can be used precisely to meet the needs of Crimea at the expense of the occupied Zaporizhzhia NPP," the Representation noted and added that the theft of electricity by the occupiers could create a shortage of electricity for the needs of the population of the region.

Anonymous Telegram channels promote the message of Ukraine's inability to rebuild, showing how the Russians are allegedly repairing the Melitopol-Berdyansk highway and building houses "even without a referendum."

The purpose of such a message is likely to be psychological pressure on the residents of the occupied territories, as well as to spread the message that Ukraine will not have enough funds to rebuild the country.

Russian media spread information that the Germans are demanding the launch of Nord Stream 2 by the German authorities. Russian propagandists note that the demands of German citizens are caused by alleged fears after Vladimir Putin's statement that the freezing of the gas pipeline took place at the initiative of the German side. This article consists of comments on a German newspaper Die Welt report.

In fact, it is manipulation and one of the tactics of Russian propaganda - to publish comments under foreign publications articles for society's " opinion. " In 2021, Cardiff University's Institute for Crime and Security Research investigated this operation of the influence of Russian propaganda and concluded that the comments of readers who published pro-Kremlin content showed signs of "inauthenticity and coordination." So, the work of the commentators is organized and supervised. This study shows that Russia uses provocative pro-Russian or anti-Western comments in response to articles in Western media, including Die Welt, for its propaganda. "Then these comments are used by many Russian-language mass media, which take them as a basis for materials about politically controversial events. "Marginal mass media" and websites with experience spreading disinformation and propaganda also write about them. This influence operation was uncovered as part of an investigation into online activity amid tensions between Ukraine and Russia in early 2021. But researchers believe that the use of this tactic has been spreading since 2018," the Institute said.    

The Center reported it for Combating Disinformation under the National Security and Defense Council in a telegram.

"On the fake Facebook page "Ukraine 24", which has visual features of the official Facebook page of the "Ukraine 24" TV channel, an edited video of one of Zelenskyi's speeches was posted with a call to transfer the person's data; transfer of the bank card number," the message reads.

As noted in the fake video, "all this is necessary for a guaranteed payment of UAH 8,000 to every citizen who has registered."

Such messages and video materials are elements of fraudulent schemes aimed at acquiring personal data and funds of trusting citizens.

Such information is distributed on social networks by blogger Serhii Gula. He published a video that warns Ukrainians not to apply for humanitarian aid from the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). For example, the organization does not request permission to process personal data, does not set restrictions on the transfer of collected data to third parties, and does not provide data security guarantees. It is not true.

To apply for assistance from UNICEF, Ukrainians must consent to process personal data. UNICEF has the right to share this data only with other humanitarian organizations, the Ministry of Social Protection of Ukraine, and banks for making payments under the program.

The monetary aid program from UNICEF "Together" is additional support during the war for Ukrainian families with many children (three or more minor children) or families with at least one child with a disability under 18 years of age. As VoxCheck fact-checkers have investigated, to receive financial assistance under this program, it is necessary to provide family members' personal data to check compliance with the program's criteria. Received UNICEF will store personal information for no more than five years from the moment of its last use. The organization claims to store information on a secure server using data encryption methods.

Such information is distributed on social networks. However, it is not true.

PJSC "Zaporizhzhiaoblenergo" denied the report about the disconnection of energy supply in the temporarily occupied territories. The company emphasizes that there are currently no planned power outages in the Zaporizhzhia region, and there will not be any. A similar message was published by the press service of "DTEK Donetsk Electric Networks." The enterprises confirm that there are problems with energy supply in certain territories. Still, they are connected exclusively with damage to power grids due to military actions or difficult weather conditions. However, if there is an opportunity, energy workers have been working around the clock since the first days of a full-scale invasion and restoring electrical equipment as soon as possible.

Earlier, propagandists spread fakes about the disconnection of gas supply in the temporarily occupied territories. In this way, they try to convince the residents of the temporarily occupied territories that they have been "abandoned" or "forgotten" in Ukraine and the occupiers "care" about their well-being.

On Facebook, messages about a fake raffle from the "ATB" supermarket chain were spread, supposedly for the 29th anniversary of the chain for residents of Volyn.

The participants of the so-called raffle were promised several HP laptops and iPhone 13. Fact-checkers of the Brekhunets project discovered another fraudulent scheme.

Fraudsters offered everyone to register to participate in the draw through a special form. Moreover, you need to select "free gift card" and download a document with unknown content, probably a virus or other software tweaks that attackers use to gain remote access to personal devices and their information.

The information about the fake raffle was denied on the official Facebook page of the "ATB" trade network. "ATB" representatives call for vigilance and attention, not to participate in fraudulent promotions, and advise to look for trustworthy information about promotional offers on the company's official website and official pages on social networks.

Previously, we wrote about a fraudulent scheme that allegedly guaranteed Volyn residents payments of UAH 9,800 from the European Union, but instead, criminals tried to steal bank card data.

The Center for Combating Disinformation at the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine refutes the main fakes about the return of customs duties and taxes on imports.

The Center explains that cars from the EU do not become more expensive, but customs clearance costs return because many people have abused the "zero" rate. That is why the Verkhovna Rada returned customs duties and taxes on car import and customs clearance.

Information about products from Europe. In connection with the restoration of logistics systems, from July 1, the Verkhovna Rada resumed taxation for goods imported by taxpayers of the single tax's first, second, and third groups. This step will help cheaper goods from domestic producers to compete in the consumer market.

They are spreading a fake that returning customs duties and import taxes will do nothing but corruption. In fact, it is expected that the return of the customs duty will allow replenishment of the budget by at least UAH 3.5 billion every month. These funds will support the Armed Forces and create new jobs for citizens who lost their jobs during the war.

Mykhaylo Onufriyenko, a pro-Russian journalist and blogger from Ukraine, said this on the TV channel of Kremlin propagandist Volodymyr Solovyov "Solovyov Live." He believes that "the Anglo-Saxons, of course, are ready to fight to the last Ukrainian, but Europe does not want to fight." And allegedly, the West does not want to help Ukraine because it thinks about the heating season and whether there will be gas. However, it is not true. Even though the EU is preparing for a complete gas blockade by Russia, support for Ukraine does not stop. Western countries help Ukraine defend itself against Russia and provide humanitarian aid. In addition, the other day, Ukraine received a German grant of 1 billion euros. On July 7, the European Parliament supported the provision of European macro-financial assistance to Ukraine for 1 billion euros.

Such a statement was made by the Deputy Chairman of the Security Council and former President of Russia, President of Russia Dmytro Medvedev.

It follows from Medvedev's words that the previous history of post-Soviet Russia was not taken seriously in the West. He gave the example of the meeting of the leaders of the states in the G8 format turned into the G7 because Russia was not invited there.

"If they ignore you, things are bad as in childhood, when neighbors came to fight in your yard. If you get scared and run home, you are nobody and will not be called anywhere else. And if you hit first, the chances of defending your position become significantly higher," wrote the former president of Russia.

Russian mass media cite the statement of Thierry Mariani, a member of the European Parliament, who is known for his pro-Russian views and visits to the occupied Crimea as part of a fake EU delegation that wrote the StopFake project. Fact-checkers drew attention to the fact that a different position does not reflect the position of the entire European Parliament and the EU, and generalization is a technique for manipulation. Since the beginning of the Russian aggression, the EU has mobilized about 4.1 billion euros in emergency aid. In addition, in May, the European Commission offered to provide Ukraine with additional macro-financial assistance: 25-year loans with a 10-year grace period for the return of the principal amount, writes Bloomberg regarding three EU officials. EU funds will also cover the interest on these loans. More details.    

In social networks, a manipulative thesis is being spread to a foreign audience that the British are allegedly being deceived about the increase in fuel cost after the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine. As an "argument," they use a comparison of the price of fuel in Ukraine and Britain, and they also call to "wake up and do something."

Fuel prices in Ukraine are lower than in Britain. However, according to Reuters Fact Check, it is due to fuel taxes. At the same time, in both countries, retail fuel prices rose after the outbreak of the Great War. Head of the research department of The Global Economy Project Neven Valev, RAC spokesperson Simon Williams, and Wood Mackenzie chief analyst Isabelle Gilks ​​explained that countries with lower excise taxes on fuel have lower prices. Williams added that Ukrainian gasoline "currently has no excise tax and only 7% VAT." According to Gilks, taxes on petrol and diesel in Britain "include 20% VAT and fuel duty of almost 53p per liter". So the difference in the cost of fuel in Ukraine and the UK is affected by taxation, which does not prove that the public is being deceived about the prices in the UK. This manipulation is being spread to fuel the message of "general war fatigue" and cause the British to mistrust their government, and in the future to encourage them to oppose the government's initiatives to support Ukraine.    

The first deputy chairman of the Kherson Regional Council, Yuriy Sobolevsky, said that the Russian occupiers were dispersing such "news" in the region. However, it is not true.

"The Orcs are spreading misinformation that Ukraine has refused pension provision for the Kherson region. It's fake! All pensions will be accrued," Sobolevsky wrote on Facebook.

He noted that all pensions would be transferred: Ukraine has fulfilled and continue to fulfill all social obligations to its citizens in the Kherson region.

"The problem of issuing money to pensioners who do not have bank cards has not been physically solved because the occupiers have refused the practice of allowing humanitarian convoys from Ukraine from the first days, and now they have suppressed the work of Ukrposhta in the region," explained Sobolevsky.

On June 30, the Kherson City Council confirmed that the Kherson Directorate of "Ukrposhta" ceased its operations in the occupied territories. Resumption of work is possible only under the Ukrainian authorities.

"Ukrposhta survived for four months under the conditions of occupation. Pensions and social benefits were paid to people. From the first days of the occupation, we stopped receiving monetary support for the payment of pensions. It became increasingly difficult to collect money at the expense of paying utility bills and remittances," says a representative of the Kherson directorate of JSC "Ukrposhta."

The City Council stressed that pensions will not be canceled but will be accumulated in accounts at Oshchadbank, and they can be obtained in the controlled territory at any branch of this bank.    

Russian media reports that "specialists of the Center for Special Information and Psychological Operations of the Armed Forces" conducted another "operation." They allegedly took out the grain and blew up an empty granary in Zelenodolsk, Dnipropetrovsk region, to accuse the Russian army of destroying civilian infrastructure. It is not true.

The local authorities denied the information. The head of the Dnipropetrovsk RMA, Valentin Reznichenko, said that on June 30, the Russians shelled the Kryvorizka district and targeted the agricultural enterprise of the Zelenodol community. As a result, a warehouse containing 40 tons of grain was destroyed. The local authorities provided photo and video evidence of the events. The occupiers called the evidence "another fake" that "is being replicated by Ukraine with the help of the West."    

This manipulative thesis, spread by the Russian media, is part of the fakes about the supposed "ineffectiveness of Western sanctions against the Russian Federation" and that "anti-Russian sanctions hit Europe more painfully than the Russian Federation." This time, Russian propagandists used the New York Times article as "proof" that "Russia was almost unaffected by the sanctions." However, this thesis is not there.

"News" under this title was published by Russian and Belarusian publications concerning the mayor of Riga, Martins Stakis. Allegedly, he stated that the hotels in the capital may soon stop accepting Ukrainian refugees for free and that on July 1, the agreement between the Latvian government and representatives of the hotel business may terminate. On June 15, Martins Stakis gave an interview to Latvian Television (LTV) and spoke about Ukrainian refugees.

He said the state should provide more compensation for hosting refugees in hotels. Otherwise, they will no longer provide these services, and refugees will have to find new accommodation.

The Center for Combating Disinformation at the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine denied the fakes about receiving a Ukrainian pension abroad.

Pensions are accrued to all retirees! The bodies of the Pension Fund of Ukraine and the social protection of the population carry out monthly accrual of pensions and social benefits for both internally displaced persons and citizens who went abroad due to the war in Ukraine.

The funds of those who received a pension from Ukrposhta will not be lost. If you still want to receive payments abroad, you need to change the method of receiving funds and transfer the charges to the card.

Russian media are actively spreading the news that the Americans have accused the United States and Ukraine of stealing $ 40 billion in military aid. In particular, RIA-Novosti wrote about it. Do reports say that under the news of allocating a new tranche of aid, Americans ask the authorities where the previously given money went? Also, Americans under this post seem to be concerned about the use of taxpayers' funds and financial responsibility for government actions. Russian propaganda turned the comments of anonymous users into loud headlines such as: "Where did the money go?", "Ukrainians spent the previous 40 billion too quickly!" etc. However, all this is manipulation. According to StopFake, the news was made based on the comments of seven anonymous users of the social network Twitter. Their authors are not opinion leaders, experts, or analysts. In addition, comments were added almost simultaneously, which is a sign of the activity of bots. Therefore, it is evident that such an opinion cannot reliably reflect Americans' views. Russian media often use this technique to create news and mislead readers artificially. It is not the first time Russian propaganda has tried to discredit US aid to Ukraine. Earlier, we wrote about how similar attempts were made based on extracted citations from an article published in The Wall Street Journal. Similarly, during the week, propaganda used comments from individual social media users from France and Germany to spread the idea that citizens of these countries did not support and "dislike" Ukraine.

Fake accounts spread on social networks that, despite the situation in Ukraine, the hotel administration wants to give guests a happy summer vacation. "Payment can be made both in rubles and in hryvnias. Our position is neutral; we do not choose either side. We are for peace and summer vacation by the sea," the swindlers wrote online. Earlier, similar ads could be found for the Crimean hotels of this chain.

Russian propagandists spread such information. In particular, she appeared in pro-Russian telegram channels. Such reports say that Ukraine has stopped paying salaries to public sector employees in the occupied territories and has stopped paying pensions and other social benefits. The authors of such reports claim that there will be no more payments from Ukraine for Energodar residents. However, this is a fake. It was refuted by the mayor of Energodar, Dmytro Orlov. "Dear citizen of Energodar, all this information is not true! The rashists and their collaborating henchmen in the occupied territories are increasing the number of fakes, the main purpose of which is to "stimulate" people to obtain Russian passports. After all, they saw that fewer people were willing to receive this dubious paper in Energodar and other territories than they had expected. That's why they use almost everything: persuasion, blackmail, intimidation, and artificially created feelings of hopelessness. Do not succumb to provocations! We understand that with limited access to the Internet, it is difficult to obtain timely information. But you should know: Ukraine will never voluntarily give up its citizens and is doing everything to bring the day of your liberation closer," the mayor of Energodar wrote.

This message was spread by the Russian media and social networks concerning an article in The Wall Street Journal (WSJ), published on June 13. Russian propaganda has traditionally exaggerated information and speaks of "ordinary sawing" and "expected theft." However, the quotes announced by the Russian media are taken out of context and distort the opinion expressed in the original source. The fact-checkers from StopFake drew attention to the manipulation. The WSJ published an article about how much money the United States spends daily on military aid to Ukraine under the headline: "Since billions go to Ukraine, officials are concerned about the possibility of fraud and waste." It reports that the United States sends about $ 130 million a day in aid to Ukraine (including the cost of weapons, not just money as such). The US Congress has also allocated nearly $ 54 billion to Ukraine, exceeding annual aid to any other country, including aid sent to Afghanistan at the peak of US military involvement there. The article's authors, referring to the opinion of American politicians, draw attention to the need to establish an effective mechanism for controlling the allocated funds, which did not happen at the beginning of the war due to the need to respond quickly to challenges. That is, Americans want to be sure that the money allocated goes to their goals. And this is natural, given the amount of funding.

On Facebook, the attackers launched an old fraudulent scheme of alleged "compensation for VAT paid," which now was combined with "assistance from EU countries." This advertisement is promoted on Facebook, using the Ukraine 24 TV channel logo. The message is illustrated by a photo of Volodymyr Zelensky with the "signed decree" captions and "urgent check of cards for payments to each citizen from UAH 9,800" to draw attention to the information in it. The post's description states that "Ukrainians will receive financial assistance from EU countries" and about "VAT refunds for the last three years." To receive "compensation," social network users are offered to go to a third-party site, where they are asked to provide all the card data, they say "for verification." With this card information, attackers will appropriate all the money in the account. A similar scheme was distributed in 2021 when photos of the host of "1 + 1" Alla Mazur were used.

This manipulative thesis is spread on Facebook to foreign audiences. German-language reports claim that while "at home [German] pensioners are starving," the government has provided 22 billion euros to Ukraine and plans to pay even more.

Fact-checkers discovered this manipulation from the German publication Correctiv. According to a government spokesman, Germany has allocated about 1.83 billion euros to Ukraine since 2014, about 1.6 billion euros for various aid programs since February 2022, and about a billion euros for military purposes. Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that since 2014, Germany had supported Ukraine for more than two billion euros. "Comparing assistance to Ukraine or refugees with the situation of pensioners in Germany, as they are presented in a Facebook post, is not new. It has only recently been rumored that Ukrainian refugees can receive a pension ten years earlier than Germans, which is not true," Correctiv added.