Russian sources have circulated screenshots allegedly from a French media outlet, TF1 Info, claiming to show graffiti by the French artist OakOak. The graffiti supposedly depicts Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi as a dog tied up next to French President Emmanuel Macron and former US President Donald Trump.

However, this claim is false, according to VoxCheck. TF1 Info has not published any such story, neither on their official website nor across their social media platforms like X, Facebook, or Instagram. Furthermore, the graffiti in question does not appear on the official pages of the artist OakOak.

In one of the screenshots, a beauty salon sign can be seen, written in both English and Korean. Using the Geo Spy Ai tool for image-based geolocation, it was determined that the building is located in Koreatown, Los Angeles, USA. Google Maps further confirmed the exact location where the photo was taken. As expected, no such graffiti exists at this address.

This incident follows previous debunked claims, such as fake information about a graffiti mural in Miami depicting Zelensky as a fly.

Russian sources claim that the news about the Ukrainian military capturing the first North Korean fighter is a fake, as the photo with him was allegedly distributed online on February 24, 2022. As proof of this, propagandists cite a screenshot of a reverse image search from Google, which indeed indicates that the photo was published on Reddit in the UkraineWarVideoReport community on the first day of the full-scale war.

However, this screenshot is disinformation, writes the StopFake project.

Yonhap news agency, citing South Korean intelligence, reported on December 27, 2024 that on December 26, the Ukrainian Armed Forces captured the first North Korean soldier in the Kursk region of Russia. However, the very next day, the soldier died from complications after being wounded. In the same days, photos of this prisoner of war began to circulate on the Internet.

In turn, the screenshot from Google Images that Russian propagandists are spreading is either edited or an example of a typical Google search technical glitch that occurs when searching for posts on Reddit. This issue has been discussed repeatedly on Reddit - a number of posts have been dedicated to it, but it is still unknown what exactly causes this glitch.

Moreover, the propagandists published a screenshot not of the publication itself, where the date is clearly visible, but of the result of a Google search query.

February 24, 2022 is the date of the creation of the UkraineWarVideoReport community on Reddit: it is a pro-Ukrainian resource where English-speaking users share information and materials about the Russian-Ukrainian war. The photo of the first captured fighter from North Korea was indeed published here, not two years ago, but on December 27, 2024.

We previously wrote about how Russia is hiding losses among the North Korean military.

Propagandists are circulating an image on social media that allegedly represents the cover of The Nation magazine with the headline: “Unequal duel. Volodymyr Zelenskyi failed to win - everyone is talking about Putin again. Including Zelenskyi himself”. However, this is not true.

This was reported by experts from the VoxCheck project. They found that the actual cover of the January 2025 issue of The Nation looks completely different. On the magazine's website, in the Archive section, all issues and their covers are available, but the one being shared online is not among them—neither on the official website nor on the publication's social media. The fake cover features images of Volodymyr Zelenskyi and Volodymyr Putin, along with the publication date—January 2025. However, according to the editorial team, this issue was finalized for publication by the end of 2024, and its cover does not reference the presidents of Ukraine or Russia.

The dissemination of a fake magazine cover with a critical headline aims to undermine Volodymyr Zelenskyi's reputation, portraying him as a weak leader unable to achieve victory or effectively engage in political confrontation. Such fabricated materials also attempt to suggest that international attention on Ukraine is allegedly fleeting or insignificant, contrasting it with the supposed constant focus on Russia and its leader, Volodymyr Putin. Spreading fake content resembling authoritative Western publications helps create the impression that Ukraine is not receiving the necessary support from its partners or that the international community is skeptical of its leadership. This could affect the morale of Ukrainians and their allies. Propagandists may use such fakes to create the perception that global attention is fixated on Putin rather than Zelenskyi or Ukraine, thereby reinforcing the notion that Ukraine’s struggle for independence lacks sufficient backing or prospects.

Propagandists are spreading an image on pro-Russian anonymous Telegram channels, allegedly taken in Miami (USA). It shows graffiti with a flyswatter in the colors of the American flag, which crushes the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi in the form of a fly. The author of the graffiti is allegedly the American artist Antigirl, as Al Jazeera allegedly wrote about. However, this is a fake.

There is no evidence that this graffiti actually exists in Miami. There is no information about it on the artist's official social media profiles, her official website, or Al Jazeera's website. In such cases, fakers often create images using graphic editors, adding political symbols to provoke.

The image of a “flyswatter” with an American flag and Zelenskyi’s “fly” is a derogatory metaphor that simplifies the complex context of the war in Ukraine and international support. It devalues the struggle of the Ukrainian people. Such fakes are spread to stimulate anti-Ukrainian sentiment among the American audience. Another goal of such fakes is to raise doubts among Ukrainians about international support and undermine their faith in the future.

Russian propagandists are circulating images of what is purportedly the new cover of Titanic magazine for December 2024. It depicts the head of the Presidential Office, Andrii Yermak, who is supposedly a footstool for the newly elected US President Donald Trump. The cover also contains captions: “Ukrainian leadership will be very useful to the new US president” and “Trump will appoint everyone to the right positions”.

The VoxCheck project reports that this is a fake cover. It shows issue number 4352. In fact, Titanic released a magazine with a different cover under this issue in December. It depicts the candidate for German chancellor, leader of the Christian Democratic Union, Friedrich Merz, with his wife Charlotte.

After all, all the covers that Titanic has ever created can be viewed on the magazine’s social media pages or on the magazine’s website in the Archive section. The cover with Trump and Yermak is missing there — an additional indication that the Russians created it themselves.

Also at the top right of the fake cover is the inscription “Internet-Aufgabe”. Presumably, the authors of the fake article wanted to use the word “ausgabe” (issue) instead of “aufgabe” (task). This mistake was also present on previous fake covers.

Titanic is a German satirical magazine that is published monthly and publishes mostly political cover images.

During the full-scale war, we recorded at least six fake Titanic magazine covers created by propagandists. A detailed analysis of each fabricated cover can be found on our website by typing the word “Titanic” into the search engine.

Propagandists are spreading information on anonymous Telegram channels claiming that the French satirical publication Charlie Hebdo allegedly featured a caricature of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi on its cover, depicting him as the Hunchback of Notre Dame, shunned by the leaders of France and the United States. However, this cover is a fake.

This is reported by the Centre for Strategic Communication and Information Security. They discovered that the actual publication date of the magazine (every Wednesday) and the real cover with entirely different stories prove that the fake was created by Russian propagandists.

Fakes, similar to the fabricated Charlie Hebdo cover, aim to create a negative image of President Zelenskyi and the Ukrainian government, as well as to undermine international support for Ukraine. Fakes ridiculing Ukraine are designed to create the impression that Western countries are supposedly reducing their aid and support. These actions seek to erode Ukrainians' faith in international support and to sow discord among Ukraine’s allies. They are part of a broader information warfare campaign designed to weaken Ukraine.

A purported December cover of TIME magazine is being circulated online, showing a nuclear mushroom cloud with the headline “Third World War First Nuclear War”. The post claims that unlike TIME, other outlets are intentionally stoking fear with headlines suggesting scenarios like Russia using nuclear weapons, NATO opening a second front, and the inevitability of World War III.

However, TIME magazine has not published an issue with such a cover. The official TIME website does not feature any such cover. As of the publication date of this clarification, TIME had announced only one December 2024 issue. Its cover features a photograph of Elon Musk, highlighting his achievements and potential future plans.

Additionally, a reverse image search on Google reveals that the nuclear mushroom cloud cover is primarily shared on pro-Russian Telegram channels. One such post links to a Telegram channel titled TIME | Finance. This is a closed, anonymous channel mimicking the visual style (name and logo) of the authentic TIME magazine.

Anonymous Telegram channels are spreading a photo of a school board with an announcement supposedly banning the combination of blue, red and white, as they make up the Russian flag. The photo states that violators will pay a fine.

But this is a fake announcement. No such order exists. Moreover, only Russian and pro-Russian sources are spreading this fake. There is no such news on official government pages, school resources or reliable media outlets.

The announcement states a ban on the use of these colors in drawings, clothing and stationery. However, there are many mistakes in the text:

— they wrote “connection”, although initially they used the correct phrase “combination of colors”;

— “in one origination” — most likely an incorrect derivation from the Russian phrase “in one composition”;

— the phrase “money funds” is incorrect in Ukrainian. Money and funds are synonyms and are not used together. This is an incorrect derivation from a Russian phrase.

Real official orders would not contain so many mistakes.

Russian propaganda resources are distributing a photo of an alleged instruction for schoolchildren in Ukraine, which explains how to properly kneel to greet a fallen Ukrainian defender from the front.

In fact, this instruction is fake, the Kherson region media outlet Vhoru (Up) reports. The reverse image search function on Google helped establish that the drawing from this instruction is being sold on several stock photo sites. The description of the drawing says that these are football players protesting on their knees against racism and police brutality. This is how they express support for the Black Lives Matter movement.

The propagandists also added an excerpt from the poem On the Shield by Facebook user Oksana Lesyk-Paduchak to the fake instruction. It was published on January 26, 2024. Presumably, an excerpt from this poem was placed on the instructions to give greater credibility to the fake photo and because of the poem’s mention of “Bandera’s flag”, one of the “favorite” words of Russian propaganda.

In the end, the photo of this instruction was not published in any reliable Ukrainian or foreign sources, but was only distributed in the pro-Russian segments of social media.

In Ukraine, people honor the memory of fallen soldiers by taking a knee. This is a voluntary gesture of respect. In many cultures, people also kneel to pray and ask for forgiveness. However, the creators of this fake put a negative connotation into this symbolic action, which on their photo instruction can be perceived as an act of submission, humiliation or weakness.

Earlier, we refuted the information that in Lviv, first-graders are forced to kneel to honor the memory of fallen defenders.

Russian Telegram channels have shared a photo from the alleged website of a Ukrainian funeral service that transports the dead around the world. Propagandists write that it has been operating since 2022 and claims “hundreds of satisfied customers”.

In fact, this information is not true, reports the VoxCheck project. Using the interface details in the screenshot that is being shared online, it was possible to find out that this is a screenshot of the website of the VIK funeral home. The company does provide services for transporting the deceased both to and from Ukraine.

However, the corresponding page of the site has been edited – the original talks about the complexity of transporting bodies to other countries and the willingness to help with any kinds of issues. There is no section on the site that says “hundreds of satisfied customers”. Also, according to propagandists, the bureau has been operating since 2022, although the official website states that the bureau has been operating since 2016.

Earlier, we analyzed fake news about a funeral company from Cherkasy issuing leaflets with the inscription “take care of your husband in advance”.

Russian propaganda Telegram channels are circulating photos allegedly depicting a rally in Kyiv involving the wives and children of Ukrainian military personnel participating in the Kursk operation. At the rally, children of Ukrainian soldiers are supposedly holding posters with slogans “Syrskyi, where is our dad?” and “Syrskyi, bring dad home!”.

This is actually fake news, writes the VoxCheck project. Thanks to Google’s reverse image search function, it was possible to find out that the photos distributed by propagandists are fabricated. In the original photos the inscriptions on the posters are different. The actual slogans were “For the Armed Forces of Ukraine!” and “Buy toys to help soldiers!”. One of the photos was taken in April 2022 in Odesa, the other in September 2022 in Kyiv. So in fact, the children from the photos did not rally against the AFU operation in the Kursk region, but collected funds to support Ukrainian fighters.

Earlier, we disproved the information that people in Zhytomyr had protested against Zelenskyi.

The pro-Russian segment of the network is spreading information that one of the Ukrainian cafes allegedly has a menu with different prices for civilians and military personnel. These menus are allegedly called “standard” and “for the military” respectively, with similar dishes and inflated prices for the second category. As “proof” of this, the propagandists add a corresponding photo.

However, this information is not true, as reported by the VoxCheck project.

Using Google's reverse image search function, it was possible to find out that this news is only being spread by Russian propaganda resources. The probable original source of the photo is the Russian Telegram channel Actually in Kherson. Neither the name of the establishment that allegedly has such a menu nor its address are known. Most likely, this is simply an edited photo or a staged shot.

Usually, such cases of discrimination against Ukrainian military personnel gain publicity in the media and social networks. However, no reliable Ukrainian publications reported on this incident.

Earlier, we refuted the information that some Ukrainian stores had introduced a 20% tax for Territorial recruitment and social support center employees.

Russian Telegram channels are distributing what appears to be a new cover of the Spanish magazine El Jueves. It features a cartoon of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi, who shot himself because of Donald Trump's victory in the US presidential election, and the corresponding title: “World War III is postponed”.

However, this is a fake, writes the VoxCheck project. The cover of El Jueves magazine, distributed by propagandists, is not real. It shows issue number 2406. In November, the magazine published three weekly issues under this number (No. 2406-01, No. 2406-02, No. 2406-03). And none of the covers of these issues mention Ukraine, Zelenskyi, or World War III.

El Jueves is a Spanish satirical magazine published weekly and featuring caricatures on its covers.

During the full-scale war, we have documented at least eight fake El Jueves magazine covers created by propagandists. A detailed analysis of each fabricated cover can be found here.

A Russian Telegram channel is spreading information that Kyiv schools have begun replacing portraits of the current US President Joe Biden with portraits of the newly elected President Donald Trump. As “proof” of this, the propagandists are adding corresponding photos, allegedly taken in one of the Kyiv schools.

In fact, this information is not true, the VoxCheck project reports. The photos distributed by Russian propagandists are likely staged. There is no indication that they did anything in the Ukrainian school. It is even more surprising that on the stand dedicated to Britain, among the portraits of Elizabeth II and William Shakespeare, they placed photos of the presidents of the USA and Ukraine. In the end, it was possible to find out that these images were distributed exclusively in the pro-Russian segment of the network, which gives additional grounds to believe that this is a fake.

In Ukraine, the practice of placing portraits of presidents in school classrooms is not widespread. Back in 2016, the then Minister of Education and Science of Ukraine, Serhii Kvit, declared that it was unacceptable to place portraits of ministers and other civil servants in educational institutions. The Ministry of Education and Science recommended, first of all, to place state symbols, portraits of historical figures or graduates that educational institutions are proud of.

Earlier, we analyzed the lie that Trump was added to the “Peacemaker” database.

The social network X spread information that the people's deputy Danylo Hetmantsev said: “We are currently studying the experience of other countries in the field of taxation for pet owners. It doesn't matter if it is a dog, cat, parrot, gopher or any other pet, it must have mandatory insurance and a fixed tax on the owner”.

In fact, this quote is fake, as the VoxCheck project writes. There is no such information in the Ukrainian media or in the social networks of MP Hetmantsev. Hetmantsev's quote exists only in one image, which was distributed several times by users on the network, but there is no such text separately from the image. These words, which are attributed to the MP, were published on the network back in August 2024, but then there were much fewer such messages, VoxCheck adds.

Also, when creating this quote, the fakers made several mistakes. In particular, in the word "taxation", instead of the second letter “a” they wrote “o”. Also, it is likely that the text was first written in Russian, and then translated into Ukrainian. This is evidenced by the fact that the word “possessor” is more formal, it is often used in a figurative sense - for example, the owner of life. A person who has property or animals is correctly called an “owner”, and not a “possessor”. So it would be correct to say "the owner of pets".

We do not have mandatory registration of pets and especially taxation in this area. The procedure for insuring pets at the state level has not been implemented either. Animal owners can do this in private companies.

Earlier, we analyzed the Russian message that “Ukrainians are Nazis because they choose big dogs”.

Russian propaganda sources are distributing a fake advertising flyer allegedly from the funeral and ritual service Traur. The youth of Kyiv offer to “lie in a real coffin” for 60 minutes, in particular, to “overcome the fear of death”. In addition, the fakers noted the availability of a 50% discount for “young people of draft age”.

“The clients are indicated absolutely specifically - these are those who will have to go to the front line in time. And with a high probability, they will return from there not in a fake coffin, but in a real one”, the Kremlin publication writes.

As reported by StopFake, the owner of the funeral and ritual service Traur denied the information about providing such services and about making an advertising flyer. This is another Russian fake aimed at demoralizing the population of Ukraine during a full-scale war. Moreover, the propagandists were most likely inspired by the recent news from Japan, where a funeral home really does provide the service of “lying in a coffin” to think about life and death.

Russian Telegram channels and social media users are spreading information that Ukrainian military personnel are allegedly being removed from databases so that the families of the deceased do not receive payments. As “evidence”, a video is shown in which a woman, introducing herself as the wife of the deceased, claims that her husband is not on the lists. However, she does not name names, military units or other details. StopFake writes about this.

The photo that the woman is holding in her hands shows Andrii Kainara, a defender of Azovstal who was held captive and later returned to service. The organization that deals with his brigade confirmed his death in battle in September 2023, noting that Kainara did not have a wife, only a sister. The video is recognized as a fake aimed at discrediting Ukraine and its military.

The purpose of spreading this disinformation is to undermine the trust of Ukrainian citizens in state institutions, in particular, in the Armed Forces and government agencies. The propaganda seeks to create the impression that the state allegedly does not fulfill its obligations to the families of the fallen soldiers, which can sow despondency and demoralization among the population. This fake is also aimed at discrediting the Ukrainian army before the international community, demonstrating its alleged incompetence or indifference to its own soldiers and their families.

Russian propaganda Telegram channels claim that the cover of the German satirical magazine Titanic for November 2024 allegedly depicts a US Air Force plane that Ukrainians are clinging to. And the caption on the cover is supposedly: “The US withdrawal from Ukraine will remind us of something”. As proof, Russian propagandists add a corresponding photo.

However, in fact, this is a fake cover of the Titanic issue for November, as reported by the VoxCheck project. The original cover for this month is posted on the official website of the magazine - it looks different and does not concern Ukraine.

Also, at the top right on the fake cover there is the inscription “Internet-Aufgabe”. Probably, the authors of the fake article wanted to use the word “ausgabe” (issue) instead of “aufgabe” (task).

Titanic is a German satirical magazine that comes out monthly and features mostly politically themed covers.

During the full-scale war, we have documented at least five fake Titanic magazine covers created by propagandists. A detailed analysis of each fabricated cover can be found here.

Propagandists are spreading a photo of a woman in Ukrainian national dress on social networks, claiming that she is supposedly the grandmother of Russian TV presenter Ksenia Sobchak. The publications state that the woman was born in the village of Drozdni between Lutsk and Kovel, adding her life story. However, this is not true.

This is what StopFake writes about. The project's specialists found out that the photo actually shows the grandmother of Ukrainian journalist Anton Naumliuk of the “Graty” (Bars) publication, who spoke in detail about her biography. The photo was first distributed in 2017 for the family archive.

Information about the Sobchak family is available in open sources. Her paternal grandmother, Nadiia Andriivna, was Polish and lived in Tashkent. On the maternal side, Valentyna Volodymyrivna Narusova, originally from Leningrad, lived in Briansk. Although her family's Ukrainian roots are sometimes mentioned, no confirmation of a connection with the woman in the photo has been found.

Russian sources are spreading information that, as part of a collaboration between Coca-Cola and the International Committee of the Red Cross, dozens of mobile morgues in the standard Coca-Cola red and white colors and the coloring of the “favorite Ukrainian embroidered shirt, so that it would be pleasant to lie there” were delivered to the city of Sumy. As proof of this, the propagandists add a photo showing mobile containers with what appears to be the English inscription “Mobile Morgue”.

However, this is another fake of Russian propaganda, the Center for Countering Disinformation reports. The mobile containers that the propagandists write about are mobile boiler houses that the Ukrainian Red Cross, in cooperation with the Coca-Cola company, delivers to local communities to support the population of Ukraine. Thus, in 45 mobile boiler houses that were provided to local communities last year, another 60 will be delivered during the 2024 heating season.

In addition, there is no sign “Mobile Morgue” on the boiler houses – it was superimposed on the photo by propagandists, replacing the original sign “Mobile boiler house”.

Earlier, we recorded a fake from the Russians that mobile crematoriums were being created in Ukrainian TRO brigades.

Russian propaganda sources are distributing a photo of a fake announcement about the evacuation of stray dogs in Sumy. The reason given is the “threat of North Korean occupiers”.

However, the Sumy City Council did not publish such information either on the website or in social networks. In addition, the ad does not contain any information about the organization that could be involved in the evacuation of dogs. As for the contacts where they advised to contact, there is a blurred QR code for a bot on Telegram, a hotline for the Sumy City Council and the Cabinet of Ministers. So the ad is a fake, and VoxCheck reports this.

In Sumy, no evacuation was announced for either citizens or dogs. Thus, Russian propagandists are trying to sow panic due to the possible direct entry of North Korea into the Russian-Ukrainian war.

Read on Censor.NET: Dogs are allegedly being mobilized in Ukraine.

Anonymous propaganda Telegram channels are actively distributing an ad about a “50% discount” on one boot for veterans of the Armed Forces of Ukraine with a disability allegedly established by Ukrainian sellers. However, this is fiction, and the photo with the ad has been edited.

This is what experts at the Center for Countering Disinformation say. They note that this type of disinformation is aimed at manipulating citizens' emotions in order to cause indignation and despondency among Ukrainians, especially among those who actively support the military and help the wounded. Through targeted fakes, Russian propagandists are trying to portray Ukrainian society as not appreciating its heroes, as absolutely false and manipulative.

Such propaganda can also sow discouragement among international partners providing financial and humanitarian aid to Ukraine. Propaganda seeks to convince both external and internal audiences that support for veterans is weak and their needs are ignored. This not only undermines unity within the country, but can negatively affect Ukraine’s reputation in the world. At the same time, such manipulations reinforce stereotypes, portraying Ukraine as a country that allegedly despises its heroes, which in a war situation is a dangerous tool for psychological influence on society.

Russian propaganda telegram channels are distributing a photo of an ad pasted to a pole with information for Ukrainians about the possibility of earning extra money in Georgia. The poster promises 100 euros for one participation in a rally, and as much as 150 euros for people with a flag. The ad also says that even men are helped to leave Ukraine. Propagandists comment on the poster, writing that these are supposedly Ukraine's priorities today: “Not to pull your country out of the mud, but to plunge others deeper into the same mud”.

In fact, such a poster does not exist - it was created using graphic editing and superimposed on a photo. This was found out thanks to the reverse image search function from Google. So, the original photo was first posted online in 2021 on the regional resource of the city of Rivne 0362.ua, and it shows a completely different poster - an announcement of a joint concert of DOROFEEVA and Dance Way, dedicated to the 10th anniversary of the modern dance studio.

In addition, the original image has been edited in other places. For example, a different gate and the roof of the building located in the back right of the photo are noticeable.

This fake photo is a reaction of Russians to the protests in Georgia, which began after the parliamentary elections in this country. Georgians took to the streets to express their disagreement with the official election results. Russian propaganda did not miss the opportunity to take advantage of the unstable situation in both countries - both in Ukraine and in Georgia, and issued such a primitive fake in order to claim that the protests in Georgia were paid for and decreed.

Propaganda Telegram channels are spreading the message that Ukrainian soldiers from the 61st Separate Mechanized Brigade are “committing atrocities” against civilians in Kursk and “bragging” about photographs of the tortured on the Internet.

But in fact, the original publication talks about Russian atrocities in one of the villages that was liberated by the fighters of the 61st Separate Mechanized Brigade. To create a fake, the real message was edited.

In fact, the original publication is a message from October 13, 2024 on the Facebook page of the educational project of the analytical center CASE Ukraine “The Price of the State”. The description of the project states that it explains to Ukrainians “how much the state costs them and what their taxes are spent on”.

The message noted that the photo shows the aftermath of Russian crimes in one of the liberated villages (the location is not specified). The 61st Separate Mechanized Brigade took control of this settlement. Its fighter took a photo of the dead tortured by the Russians. The post then included a gathering for the brigade. There is no mention of the Kursk region in the text. The Russians changed the original publication.

Russian Telegram channels are distributing photos and videos from various places in Kyiv, where posters with the words “Putin will come and restore order” were allegedly posted. The cards were allegedly posted for the Russian dictator's birthday on October 7, 2024.

But the fakers took a photo of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra from an article in a Ukrainian media outlet and added Putin's posters to it in a photo editor. Other photos are distributed exclusively by Russian channels. After all, a reverse Google search showed that the photo with the flag, which allegedly has a poster of Putin pasted on it, was taken from a 2023 article by the Ukrainian media outlet Texty.org.ua. The article is dedicated to the work of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra reserve during the war.

The locations in other photographs of Russians cannot be identified. There is no confirmation that such postcards ever appeared in Kyiv or Ukraine as a whole. If they were really noticed in Kyiv, this would lead to a public outcry and publications would appear on Telegram channels or in the media. Meanwhile, the “news” is spread exclusively by Russian and pro-Russian sources. In this way, they are trying to show that Putin is “awaited” in Ukraine and is not perceived as an aggressor.