Russian propagandists claim in the media that the Ukrainian Armed Forces are allegedly preparing a ‘new Bucha’ in Sudzha and are using civilians as human shields. However, such reports are part of an information campaign aimed at concealing a war crime committed by Russian forces - specifically, the killing of a civilian resident of Russia during an airstrike on an orphanage in Sudzha.

This was reported by the Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security. Its experts assert that in this case, the responsibility for the deaths lies with the Russian authorities, who refuse to organize humanitarian ‘green corridors’ for evacuation, while continuing to shell their own citizens using aviation and artillery. On the other hand, Ukrainian soldiers strictly adhere to the norms of international humanitarian law: they provide civilians with access to drinking water, food, medications, hygiene products, and also offer medical assistance. Meanwhile, during the occupation of the Bucha district of Kyiv in 2022, Russian war criminals killed at least 1,190 Ukrainian civilians.

Propagandists spread such fake news for several reasons, aiming to achieve political, military, and psychological goals. Such statements divert attention from the war crimes committed by the Russian army. Creating a false narrative of Ukraine's ‘guilt’ allows the actions of Russian soldiers to be justified as those of ‘defenders’. Propaganda shapes a false picture of events for Russian citizens, justifying the war as ‘defense’ against an imagined threat. The creation of an enemy image, which is allegedly committing crimes, strengthens support for the war among the population. Through such fakes, the Russians also seek to discredit Ukraine in the eyes of the international community, portraying it as a violator of international law. Such statements often serve as informational cover for future provocations or terrorist acts that the Russian side plans to carry out, but attempts to blame Ukraine for them.

Russian anonymous Telegram channels are actively circulating a video claiming that a sniper from the Main Intelligence Directorate of Ukraine allegedly killed several pensioners near Pokrovsk. This is being presented as another fabricated ‘war crime’ by Ukrainian forces. In reality, this is a complete fake.  

The Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security reports that propagandists distorted the context, portraying Russian soldiers as ‘pensioners’ in their disinformation. The original video, published by Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense Intelligence, shows a person in camouflage carrying a water bottle in their left hand and a rifle in their right hand. This clearly identifies the individual as a combatant, not a civilian, as falsely claimed by Russian propaganda.  

This is not the first instance of such disinformation. Since early January, Russian propaganda resources have been spreading dozens of synchronized fake reports, aiming to manipulate public opinion. In the first half of January alone, over 600 fake messages were detected on Telegram, alleging ‘murders’ of civilians, prisoners, and the wounded, allegedly committed by Ukrainian forces.  

These disinformation campaigns are designed to undermine trust in Ukrainian military personnel and distort the reality of the war. A central tactic of Kremlin propaganda is to depict Ukraine’s armed forces as ‘criminals’ committing acts of violence against civilians. Propagandists seek to reverse the narrative, presenting Ukraine as the aggressor while framing their own war crimes, such as killing civilians and destroying infrastructure, as defensive actions.  

By spreading such fake stories, Russian propaganda also aims to weaken international support for Ukraine and justify their military operations by shifting the blame for violence onto Ukraine.

Russian propaganda Telegram channels are circulating a purported NBC News clip claiming that Ukrainian hackers allegedly hacked WhatsApp and began sending mass fake news to Americans about Ukraine's military successes and minimal losses in the Russia-Ukraine war. Propagandists mockingly comment that “when victory doesn’t happen in reality, Ukrainians decided to bring it closer in WhatsApp”.  

In reality, this information is false, as reported by VoxCheck. Using Google’s reverse image search, it was discovered that the video features Gadi Schwartz, a reporter from NBC News' Stay Tuned NOW program. The fake news used a snippet from a segment titled The Future of Everything published on NBC News’ official YouTube channel on December 4, 2024.  

While the original NBC News segment did mention a large-scale hacking attack on nearly all major U.S. communications companies, the report attributed the attacks to China, not Ukraine.  

Additionally, the segment includes an interview snippet with Chris Krebs, the former director of the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. In the actual NBC News report, Krebs comments on China's cyberattacks on U.S. telecommunications systems, not on any actions by Ukraine.  

This is not the first instance of Russian disinformation regarding NBC News. Previously, similar claims were made, alleging that an American official admitted on NBC News that U.S. intelligence data on Russia was mostly fabricated - a claim also proven false.

Pro-Russian Telegram channels have been circulating a video, allegedly showing a Ukrainian soldier being executed for refusing to fight. The propagandists claim that such incidents are widespread, but are supposedly not being reported.

However, this video is a staged production. In the footage, the man, who is said to have refused to fight, is purportedly executed by hanging. However, the victim’s hands are not visible, suggesting that the individual is likely holding onto something above him. If this were truly an execution by hanging, the hands would logically be tied behind his back to prevent any chance of escape.

Another indication that the video is staged is the language used by the ‘Ukrainian soldier’ carrying out the ‘execution’. He asks the man, “Are you really refusing to defend our country?” in broken Ukrainian. Moreover, the pixelated uniform worn by the man posing as the ‘Ukrainian soldier’ could have been acquired in battle and used for such propaganda purposes.

This video is yet another example of Russian-produced staged propaganda. Previously, we have analyzed similar faked videos, including:

- (Fake) Ukrainian soldiers shooting ‘foreign mercenaries’ in the Ukrainian Armed Forces;

- (Fake) Russia Today publishing footage of a ‘captured Ukrainian saboteur’ detained in the Kursk region;

- (Fake) Posters with an ‘expired’ Zelenskyi appearing in Kyiv.

A disinformation video is being spread on social media claiming that Ukraine is leading the world corruption ranking among other countries. Dozens of completely identical posts, which have garnered thousands of views and hundreds of comments, also claim that Ukraine, despite being ‘the world’s most corrupt country’, is ‘the last in terms of salaries’.

However, the disinformation videos lack any references to the source of the primary information. The authors of the posts do not provide any data on which ratings they refer to or where the corresponding figures came from.

The level of corruption perception in the world is measured by many private companies, but the most extensive rating is provided by the independent organization Transparency International in its annual studies. According to the results of 2023 (the rating for 2024 has not yet been published), Ukraine scored 36 points out of 100 possible in the global Corruption Perceptions Index and ranked 104th among 180 countries. At the same time, Ukraine showed an increase in the rating by 3 points - this is one of the best results in 2023 in the world. Thus, Ukraine ranks approximately in the middle of the rating and is very far from the title of ‘the most corrupt country in the world’.

The Center for Countering Disinformation reports that Russian propagandists continue to implement an information operation aimed at discrediting the servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine who are performing tasks in the Pokrovsk area. In particular, the Russians are spreading new fakes about ‘mass killings of civilians’. The propagandists lie that the Ukrainian military is killing civilians who are allegedly moving towards Russian positions in search of salvation.

Russia seeks to intimidate the people who still remain in the city, turn them against the Ukrainian Armed Forces, and disrupt the evacuation from Pokrovsk. Finally, the Center for Countering Disinformation adds that Russia intends to use the civilian population as a ‘human shield’ to deter the actions of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

Previously, we analyzed disinformation about the alleged mass registration of Ukrainians in Pokrovsk ‘to become Russian citizens after the occupation of the city’.

Russian propaganda sources are spreading a fake video by the American online publication Wall Street Journal that claims that Ukrainian soldiers from “nationalist battalions” are receiving medical care at the frontline, as WSJ journalist Ben Solomon allegedly reported.

“Hundreds of ordinary soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine are dying on the battlefield because of this unspoken rule”, they write in the video.

However, this information is not true, as reported by VoxCheck. The Wall Street Journal did not publish such a video, and Ben Solomon did not make similar statements. That is, Russian propagandists created another fake video with a link to a well-known reliable media outlet to promote narratives aimed at discrediting the Ukrainian army.

Thus, Russian propaganda speculates on the topic of the unprofessionalism of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the contemptuous attitude of the Ukrainian command towards soldiers in order to undermine the trust of Ukrainians in the army. In addition, propagandists demonize the term “nationalism” in the context of choosing a conscious path for Ukrainian society. First of all, in order to split the population of Ukraine into camps of “their own” and “alien”.

Russian Telegram channels are spreading information that 76,000 Ukrainian soldiers from the Lviv region died at the front. In addition, propagandists write that, according to Chinese estimates, the total losses of the Ukrainian Armed Forces exceeded 1.8 million people killed.

However, this is disinformation, the VoxCheck project reports. In fact, Russian resources do not provide any confirmation of this data - they do not indicate the source of the statistics on the number of dead fighters from the Lviv region. That is, it is unknown where the information came from that the number of dead exceeds 76 thousand from just one region.

It is worth noting that the Lviv Regional Military Administration or other representatives of local authorities have not commented on the losses of military personnel from their region. In turn, the thesis “China confirmed 1.8 million losses of the Armed Forces of Ukraine” has been spread on Russian channels since at least April 2024. However, the situation is similar here, there are no official comments from China on the losses of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in open sources.

On December 8, 2024, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi wrote on his Telegram channel that 43,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed since the beginning of the Russian full-scale invasion, and another 370,000 have been injured.

International media are also counting losses in the Russian-Ukrainian war. The latest estimate was published in The Economist on November 26, 2024. According to the publication's journalists, at least 60-100 thousand Ukrainian soldiers died in the war and, probably, about 400 thousand more were wounded. The journalists based their calculations on data on the death of soldiers from merged or published reports of intelligence services, comments from representatives of defense structures, researchers, and observers.

However, it is currently almost impossible to verify either President Zelenskyi’s data or the data of international analysts from open sources. The Economist does not provide links to all the sources it considered in its calculations, and points out that they are difficult to verify independently.

Previously, we recorded a fake video that the hosts of an American TV show were “laughing” at a story about the losses of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

Russian propagandists circulated a post on pro-Russian social media, purportedly from the charity foundation Lviv-Opir. The post claimed that soldiers from the 225th Separate Assault Battalion stole a washing machine from a house in the Kursk region. However, this is photo manipulation.

Experts from the StopFake project investigated the claim and found that the screenshot of the post was fabricated. They also located the original post on the Facebook page of the Lviv-Opir charity foundation. In the original, it is stated that Ukrainian soldiers received a washing machine from the Rak family. The foundation not only organizes collections but also facilitates the delivery of essential items to soldiers from concerned citizens.

In the fake publication, the Russians alleged that the washing machine was taken by fighters from the 225th battalion who were stationed in the Kursk region. However, the original post mentions servicemen from the Kharkiv region without specifying the unit. The legitimate post does not mention the theft of equipment; instead, it expresses gratitude for the assistance provided. Furthermore, the timestamps of the posts differ: the original was published on December 4, 2024, at 01:04 AM, while the fake appeared at 02:04 AM the same day. This time difference aligns with the time zones of Ukraine and Russia, suggesting that the fake was likely created by Russian users.

The spread of fake reports about thefts or misconduct by Ukrainian soldiers aims to discredit the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Such narratives create a negative image of the Ukrainian military both domestically and internationally, undermining support for their actions among citizens and allies. This disinformation may also seek to foster internal divisions in Ukraine, sowing doubt and mistrust among the population toward their military and volunteers. It can impact morale, trust in the government and the army, and reduce support from international partners.

This type of disinformation reinforces Russia's aggressive narrative and its denial of truth, attempting to portray Ukraine as a country where everything, from the government to the military, is uncontrolled or immoral. It serves to justify Russia’s aggressive policies and actions against Ukraine. Russian propagandists also use such disinformation to depict Ukraine as lacking unity, suggesting that Ukrainian soldiers engage in theft or behave uncontrollably. This could be an attempt to portray the situation in Ukraine as chaotic and undisciplined. Overall, such disinformation seeks to create misunderstandings, weaken trust in Ukraine and its military, and form a negative image of the country and its representatives.

Information is being spread on social media that Ukraine plans to reduce spending on prosthetics and rehabilitation of military personnel starting in 2025. This is attributed to the Minister of Health of Ukraine, Viktor Liashko, along with a fabricated quote about the state's lack of responsibility towards the military. However, in reality, this is a fake.

This is reported by StopFake. The project's specialists found out that there are no similar statements by Liashko in official sources or in the media. Moreover, for 2024 and 2025, the state not only did not reduce, but also increased funding for the relevant programs.

According to the budget, in 2024, UAH 4.3 billion was allocated for primary prosthetics and rehabilitation equipment, which is 40% more than last year. In 2025, this amount will increase to UAH 4.6 billion. UAH 1.1 billion is also provided for high-tech prosthetics. UAH 5.7 billion was allocated for rehabilitation services in the budget, and they remain free of charge for military and civilians.

Russian propagandists spread such fakes to create distrust in Ukrainian society towards the state and its social programs. Such disinformation is aimed at discrediting the Ukrainian authorities, accusing them of alleged indifference to the injured servicemen, creating panic and disappointment among the servicemen and their families. This fake is also used to divert attention from the real problems of the Russian side.

Russian propagandists are spreading a video on anonymous Telegram channels and media outlets in which journalists from the Good Day Sacramento American show  allegedly mock the combat losses of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. However, it is a fake.

This is reported by the Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security and Ukrinform. It was Ukrinform experts who found out that the original video is dated December 2019. This is confirmed by the New Year decorations in the studio, identical to those that were in the show then. Modern episodes of the show use completely different decorations. In addition, the fake video does not have the large mask of the Grinch character, which was in the real show. The show itself has a purely entertainment format, where the hosts joke and cover local events, and do not discuss political or military topics.

Such actions once again demonstrate Russia's methods of information warfare, which include distorting reality to achieve propaganda goals. This fake news is aimed at spreading false messages about the Armed Forces of Ukraine, lowering the morale of the Ukrainian military, and demoralizing society.

Russians are spreading a video with the logo of the American TV channel ABC, claiming that Ukraine allegedly lost about one million servicemen and had hundreds of thousands of people disabled due to injuries sustained in the war.

However, this video has been edited, reports the StopFake project. Using Google's reverse search function, it was possible to find the original video that was used to create this fake. It was an ABC News video from March 30, 2023 about the assistance of American non-profit organizations to Ukrainian veterans who lost limbs in the war. It talks about the work of the charity Kind Deeds, which provides Ukrainian veterans with prosthetics and organizes rehabilitation in the United States. The propagandists cut out individual frames from the original video and, using artificial intelligence, completely forged the audio track, mimicking the voice of the program's host. The original video report does not mention any data on the number of Ukrainian soldiers killed.

On December 8, 2024, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi reported that Ukraine had lost about 43,000 soldiers killed since the start of the full-scale war. As for the number of people with disabilities, there is no up-to-date official statistics available today. However, in mid-2023, the American publication The Wall Street Journal reported that over one and a half years of war, about 50,000 Ukrainians had become disabled due to amputations.

Earlier, we debunked the claim that the irreparable losses of the Ukrainian Armed Forces allegedly had already exceeded 500,000 people.

Propagandists are spreading information about alleged “atrocities” by the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Kursk region. In particular, Russian State Duma deputy Mykola Ivanov accuses the Ukrainian military of creating “torture chambers in the homes of civilians”, burning down villages, and destroying social infrastructure. Proponents place particular emphasis on the “fate of 45 children” who were allegedly “taken to Ukraine for organ trafficking”, which “caused a drop in the price of donor organs in the West”. Additionally, there are allegations of “livestock and grain theft”.

The Russian People’s Deputy did not provide any independently verifiable confirmation of his statements. Similar statements are often spread by Russian propaganda for manipulation purposes without any factual basis. The claim about “decreasing prices for donor organs” is absurd and reinforces the already existing propaganda message about Ukraine as a “hub for illegal organ trafficking”. The organ transplant system has high standards of verification of their origin and international monitoring.

Such insinuations are aimed at diverting attention from Russia’s actions, in particular its aggression against Ukraine and the crimes committed within it by the Russian military. These statements are part of an information and psychological warfare aimed at discrediting Ukraine and creating a distorted reality for the Russian audience. In addition, in this way they aim to demoralize the opponent.

Propagandists claim on anonymous Telegram channels that parts of the Ukrainian military, primarily territorial defense forces and mobilized personnel, are allegedly fleeing Kurakhove in chaos. In reality, this information is yet another fake.

This is reported by the Centre for Strategic Communication and Information Security. Advisor to the Ukrainian Air Assault Forces Command, Oleksii Mochanov, refuted these claims, emphasizing that they are an absolute lie. He urged Ukrainians to maintain information hygiene and not succumb to the enemy’s manipulations, as it continues to refine its disinformation campaigns.

Russian propaganda spreads such disinformation to sow panic, despair and chaos among Ukrainians, especially among relatives of servicemen. These statements aim to demoralize Ukrainian society, undermine trust in the defense forces, and create an illusion of success for the Russian army. Such messages are also designed to distract attention from Russia’s real problems and losses while attempting to break the morale of Ukrainian troops and their loved ones through psychological pressure.

Propagandists continue to propagate myths about the “Ukrainian trace” in Syria, in particular, statements about the cooperation between Ukraine's Defense Intelligence Directorate (GUR) and groups like Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, incorporating them into their speeches at international organizations. Media loyal to the Assad regime actively spread such fabrications as well. For example, the Syrian newspaper Al Watan reported an alleged recruitment of militants by General Budanov.

This is written by the Centre for Strategic Communication and Information Security. Its experts noticed that Russian propaganda contradicts itself: on the one hand, it claims the elimination of militants in 2015, and on the other, it claims that they cooperate with Ukraine. After the collapse of the Assad regime, Syrian media admitted their fabrications, yet Russia continues to insist on its disinformation narratives.

This strategy to discredit Ukraine reveals the contradictions in Russian propaganda, which has fallen into its own trap, unable to explain its numerous fabrications. Claims that Ukraine is recruiting or arming Syrian militants are baseless and unsupported by any evidence. Their goal is to divert attention from Russia’s actions and its war crimes in Syria and Ukraine. Russian propaganda creates such fabrications to discredit Ukraine in the eyes of the international community and shift the focus away from Russia’s destructive actions in the region. This strategy is also aimed at legitimizing Russian aggression, portraying it as a supposed fight against global terrorism.

Russian propagandists in their media, including Telegram channels, are spreading new fakes, accusing the Ukrainian military of inhumane crimes, such as killing civilians in Donbas, dumping bodies into wells, and destroying churches and drinking water sources.

This is what experts from the Center for Countering Disinformation at the National Security and Defense Council write about. They found out that these statements are based on unconfirmed “testimonies” of Russian military personnel or residents of occupied territories who are spreading rumors without any facts.

Propagandists purposefully spread such stories to discredit the Armed Forces of Ukraine, undermine the international community’s trust in Ukraine, and justify their own numerous war crimes, including the systematic destruction of civilian infrastructure and violence against civilians. Such manipulations are a classic tool of information warfare aimed at creating a false image of the enemy.

Russian Telegram channels are spreading a video in which a man says that Ukrainian stores sell dry rations intended for the Armed Forces of Ukraine. In the video, he shows soup packed in a khaki-colored vacuum-sealed bag as supposed evidence.

However, the label of the soup shown in the video differs from the label of the original dry rations of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The manufacturer of the soup is the company Veres, which sells these products legally, and both civilians and military personnel can buy them in Ukrainian stores.

The packaging clearly indicates that the producer of the buckwheat soup with pork is Veres. This soup, along with other ready-made meals by Veres, is available for purchase at stores like Epicenter and other retail chains in Ukraine. Nowhere on the packaging does it state that the product is exclusively for military use.

While AFU rations do include liquid meals, the packaging of the Veres soup is distinctly different from the standard military rations. Ukrainian military ration packaging typically features a minimalist design with white labels and black text. The khaki-colored vacuum-sealed packaging in the video is the only resemblance to the AFU rations.

Russian propagandists are distributing a photo of a supposedly special offer in one of the Ukrainian clothing stores. The information sign allegedly states: "For veterans of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, a 50% discount on the purchase of one boot."

However, this information is not true, the VoxCheck project reports. Using the Google reverse image search function, a video with this advertisement was found. The video shows that information about the promotion is posted in a fitting room of a store. However, the name of this store is not visible either on the sign or in the frame, despite the fact that the store name is usually duplicated in the announcement of the promotion.

Also, the design of the advertisement often uses the store’s corporate fonts and colors. However, the advertisement about the alleged discount for disabled military personnel has an extremely minimalistic and non-commercial look. Anyone could print such an ad and hang it in a fitting room, and then shoot a video and pass it off as a real campaign.

After all, the ad used the word “disabled”, although the correct word would be “a person with a disability”. And customers from Ukraine did not report existence of such a campaign. Instead, the primary source of this video is a Russian propagandist Armen Hasparian.

Earlier, reports were refuted regarding claims that young people in Kyiv were invited to “lie in a coffin”, and that individuals of draft age were offered a discount.

Pro-Russian Telegram channels are spreading information that the commander of the 154th separate mechanized brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Oleksandr Shcherbyna, allegedly uses the services of a Ukrainian fortune teller, Mariia Tykha. According to the propagandists, before being sent to the front line, the soldiers of the 154th brigade can allegedly “find out their fate” for an additional fee, on average up to a thousand hryvnia. The fortune teller predicts a successful operation, from which they will definitely emerge unharmed.

In fact, this is a fake, the VoxCheck project reports. There is no evidence that Mariia Tykha provides services to the commander of the 154th separate mechanized brigade, Oleksandr Shcherbyna. He has never mentioned any fortune tellers on his social media pages.

In addition, the primary source of this information is the pro-Russian Telegram channel Ukropskyi Fresh, whose messages regularly discredit the Ukrainian military.

Mariia Tykha is indeed involved in astrology, extrasensory perception, and calls herself a witch. On various YouTube channels, the woman thinks about upcoming Russian shelling on Tarot cards, predicts a “Maidan” in Moscow, the end of the war, etc. But not all of her predictions come true. Both astrology and extrasensory perception are pseudoscience, and predictions from such pseudo-experts are not supported by facts, VoxCheck adds.

Earlier, we recorded a fake about the SBU allegedly detaining tarologists, fortune tellers and psychics who predict Russia's military successes.

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.

Pro-Russian sources have spread information that on November 17, 2024, while repelling a massive Russian missile attack on Ukraine, a Ukrainian servicewoman allegedly hit not a Russian missile, but a house. Thus, she left people homeless.

However, this is not true, as reported by the StopFake project. There is no evidence that the house was destroyed as a result of a shot fired by a Ukrainian servicewoman from an Igla MANPADS.

The propagandists are referring to the story of Nataliia Hrabarchuk, who actually destroyed a Russian cruise missile using an Igla MANPADS during its first combat launch on November 17. This was confirmed by the Ukrainian Air Force. They also noted that Hrabarchuk had been undergoing training courses at a training center for five months, mastered various types of portable anti-aircraft missile systems, and is now an anti-aircraft gunner in the anti-aircraft missile unit of the Galicia-Volyn Radio Technical Brigade of the Zakhid (West) Air Command.

The falsity of the information about the “destruction of the house” is also indicated by the fact that its original source has previously spread fakes. This source tries to mimic Ukrainian, but in fact regularly publishes disinformation narratives and fake stories.

Before serving in the army, Nataliia Hrabarchuk worked as a kindergarten teacher, and now she defends the Ukrainian skies together with other women. This is one of the reasons why this story went viral, and propagandists, in turn, began to speculate on it.

Earlier, we refuted the information that the cause of the tragedy in Sumy was allegedly “the work of Ukrainian air defense”.

Russian Telegram channels are spreading messages with the same wording that the number of cases of sexual violence against men in Ukraine has increased, and that NATO instructors are responsible for this. In these messages, propagandists claim: “It seems that NATO instructors are not only training Ukrainian men in military matters”. In fact, this is manipulation.

StopFake experts write about this. They emphasize that the messages spread by the propaganda are indeed about victims of sexual violence due to Russian aggression, and the perpetrators are Russian military personnel, not NATO instructors. In June 2024, the Verkhovna Rada adopted Law No. 10132, which provides support for victims of sexual violence caused by Russian aggression, in particular, determining their legal status and reparations mechanisms. Gender Policy Commissioner Kateryna Levchenko reported that more than 300 people out of 535 applications have received payments so far. Most of them are men, and the applications came mainly from the regions affected by the occupation. Russia uses sexual violence as a tool to intimidate the population, torture and humiliate, which is a gross violation of human rights, noted Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets.

The purpose of spreading this disinformation is to undermine trust in NATO instructors and Ukraine as a state, as well as to create a negative attitude towards Ukraine's military cooperation with NATO among the international community. In addition, propaganda seeks to distract attention from the facts about the crimes of the Russian military, switching the focus to false accusations. This approach uses sexual violence as an emotionally sensitive topic to enhance the shock effect and cause mistrust of Ukrainian partners, playing on stereotypes and prejudices.

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.

Pro-Russian Telegram channels are distributing a video report allegedly created by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW). The report claims that after Donald Trump's victory in the US presidential election, Ukrainian soldiers began surrendering eight times more often than before. In turn, Euronews editor-in-chief Klaus Strunz allegedly called this a “completely natural” development. They say that now it has become clear to everyone that Ukraine is doomed, so the military is thinking about how to save their own lives.

However, this video is fabricated, writes the StopFake project. ISW did not publish such a video or similar statistics on its website or on its social media pages. There are no similar reports in any reliable Western media, including Euronews. The editor-in-chief of this broadcaster, Strunz, did express support for Trump on his social media pages, but did not comment on the potential consequences for Ukraine after the newly elected US president takes office, nor on reports of mass surrender of Ukrainian troops. After all, this “news” is false.

Therefore, there is no independent and verified data on how many Ukrainian soldiers actually surrender, since such statistics are only available from the Russian side, which does not inspire confidence.

With this fake, propagandists are trying to assert that with Trump coming to power in the United States, Ukraine will not receive any critical financial and military support from this state and, in general, a “complete catastrophe” awaits Ukrainians.

Earlier, the Russians had already distributed a fabricated video on behalf of ISW. Thus, earlier we recorded a fake video about how two out of ten Ukrainians died during meetings with representatives of the Territorial recruitment and social support centers.

Russian and Belarusian propaganda resources are disseminating information in a coordinated manner on social networks, trying to present the Ukrainian Armed Forces as using the “human shield” tactics in the Kursk region. These accusations are based on the statements of an unnamed Russian soldier without any confirmation. This means that it is not true. This is what the Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security writes.

The “human shield” message is typical of the Russian army, which has repeatedly used civilians in the occupied territories as cover since 2014. For example, in December 2023, the Ukrainian prosecutor's office opened a criminal case on the use of Ukrainian prisoners as a “human shield” in the Zaporizhzhia region. This is another attempt by Russian propaganda to shift the blame for its crimes to the Ukrainian side.

The purpose of disseminating disinformation about the alleged use of civilians in the Kursk region by the Ukrainian military as a “human shield” is to discredit the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the international arena and to increase hostility towards Ukraine among the Russian population and its presence in Ukraine to shift attention to the numerous war crimes committed by Russian troops, accusing the Ukrainian side of such crimes.