Such information is disseminated in the Kremlin propaganda media. Russian “experts” criticize the agreement between the Ukrainian company Energoatom and the Canadian company Cameco to process Ukrainian uranium to produce nuclear fuel for nuclear power plants. But they insist that the export of uranium from Ukraine does not guarantee the proper operation of the remaining nuclear power plants. It would be more convenient to cooperate with Russia. This is manipulation.

As StopFake project analysts found out, Ukraine does not give its uranium to Canada, but sends it for processing. This is necessary for the production of nuclear fuel for Ukrainian nuclear power plants.

That is, the thesis that Ukraine gives Canada all the uranium mined on its territory is not true. However, Ukraine sends it to be recycled. This is necessary in order to increase the level of safety and energy independence of nuclear power plants in Ukraine.

Such information is disseminated by a number of Facebook accounts and Russian propagandists on Telegram channels, who previously spread information about the struggle of the Ukrainian authorities with Orthodoxy and the UOC-MP. This is manipulation.

Myth Detector specialists drew attention to the case. On April 11, the Kyiv state administration issued a statement on the celebration of the Easter holidays under martial law. The curfew is in effect from 00:00 to 05:00, and residents are urged to give preference to online broadcasts of services. The website of the Kyiv city state administration says that the city authorities “appeal to the leaders of religious communities with a request to limit the holding of mass worship services and to ensure as much as possible online broadcasts from places of worship on Ukrainian TV channels and via the Internet”.

By spreading such manipulation, propagandists are trying to create a religious conflict, sow enmity in society and split it. Earlier, Detector Media debunked the fake that Ukrainian nationalists allegedly set fire to the temple of the UOC-MP in the Mykolaiv region.

This thesis was spread on social networks and in the propaganda media. Reports say that the US plans to create an international military bloc like NATO to send troops to Ukraine. As evidence, the authors of the messages refer to the material of the publication Foreign Affairs, which allegedly says that “in order to end the war in Ukraine, it is necessary to bring troops of Western countries into its territory”. This is manipulation.

The case was noticed by the fact-checkers of the StopFake team, they investigated that in the material of Foreign Affairs analysts talk about one of the possible scenarios for the introduction of security measures in Ukraine after the end of the war. The authors of the publication note that the debate on a new vision of security in the region and post-war measures to restrain Russia “should start now” to discuss and develop concepts before the start of negotiations between Ukraine and Russia.

Thus, the Atlantic-Asian Security Community (AASC) can become an alleged analogue of NATO for Foreign Affairs analysts. The organization may include members of the North Atlantic Alliance, Ukraine, its allies and other neutral states. The goals of the AASC alliance should be “strengthening the defense capability of Ukraine” and “deterring any resurgence of Russian imperialist aggression”.

That is, there is no question of any call to “send troops of Western countries into the territory of Ukraine to end the war”. Foreign Affairs analysts discussed one of the possible scenarios for the introduction of security in Ukraine after the end of the war.

This thesis was spread on social networks and in the propaganda media. Reports say that the vain Zelenskyi is spending money inappropriately and has left for Poland on “his golden train”. The authors of the messages add that Zelenskyi has a “dozen more” such trains. This is manipulation.

Analysts of the StopFake project investigated this case and found that Volodymyr Zelenskyi really went to Poland by a high-class train. However, the so-called “golden” car is not the property of the President of Ukraine. Such cars are provided by the Ukrainian railway company “Ukrzaliznytsia” for more comfortable transportation. In addition, everyone can use the services of such a VIP carriage by paying the appropriate amount for a ticket. For example, a trip from Kyiv to Odesa in November 2021 cost UAH 24,000. At the same time, saloon cars can be ordered from the following cities: Kyiv, Lviv, Odesa, Kharkiv and Dnipro.

That is, Zelensky’s thesis about the “golden train” is untrue, but he really used the services of Ukrzaliznytsia, which provides such cars for everyone to use.

By spreading such manipulation, propagandists want to discredit Zelenskyi. Allegedly, he is wasteful and vain, that instead of helping Ukraine and Ukrainians, he travels on “ten golden trains”. Thus, the authors wanted to oppose the incumbent president and the ex-president, the fugitive and traitor Yanukovych, allegedly Zelenskyi is “nothing better”.

This thesis is spread by pro-Russian telegram channels, referring to the American edition of the Washington Times. According to them, the Washington Times seems to be writing that the application of sanctions against Russia has led to a decrease in confidence in the dollar around the world, and therefore more and more countries are beginning to consider alternatives to the US currency as a reserve currency. The propagandists also claim that the world is in revolt against US financial imperialism. This is manipulation.

Specialists of the Center for Countering Disinformation under the National Security and Defense Council drew attention to the case. They highlighted several aspects of the Washington Times article that pro-Russian propagandists misrepresented. The text of the original says that China, Russia, Brazil, India, Indonesia, Argentina and South Africa are looking for a new reserve currency, and not the whole world. The article also says that the sanctions caused panic only among the Russian financial community, that is, among countries that have a well-founded fear of falling under sanctions. In addition, the author of the Washington Times article uses the phrase “America's financial imperialism” in quotation marks.

By spreading this manipulation, propagandists are trying to discredit the US and establish the opinion that sanctions against Russia should be lifted. Detector Media has already reported on similar disinformation stories regarding sanctions against Russia. For example, about the destruction of the Western economy or the destruction of Europe's “economic sovereignty” as a result of anti-Russian sanctions.

This thesis was circulated on social networks, in particular on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric. Reports say that people in the West lack the opportunity to succeed because local elites prevent it. Like, the prices for education, health care and childcare are “too high”. The authors of the messages refer to the material of the American Enterprise Institute, which also published a graph in the material, which allegedly shows that the West influences the economy badly. The graph shows the fall in prices for computer equipment, toys, televisions in the United States. On the other hand, one can notice an increase in prices for medicine, education, etc. Consequently, the authors conclude that “Western” elites create conditions under which it is “impossible for ordinary people to succeed”. This is manipulation.

The fact-checkers of the VoxCheck project investigated the case, they found out that the graph belongs to the economist Mark Perry. By it, he demonstrates the difference in pricing in selected areas, which is explained by the presence or absence of state influence. The material accompanying the chart does not say that the authorities are trying to restrict ordinary citizens from receiving services. That is, the propagandists distorted the context of the material and made up profitable graphics data.

In the article, the author mentions that this chart has been updated regularly over the past few years. It really notices the rise in prices in the field of medicine, education, etc. There is also a depreciation in technology, software, clothing. Perry attributes this to the impact of globalization: the more competition in the international arena, the lower the price of a product. Therefore, the cost of toys, equipment, and computer technology is cheaper. At the same time , the greater the degree of state participation in the provision of a good or service, the more the price rises over time. However, it is not about the fact that the Western leadership limits services for its citizens, the economist talks about general market trends and how high competition generates low prices for products and vice versa.

This thesis was circulated on social networks, in particular on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric. Reports say the UN has released a report discrediting the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate. The authors of the messages refer to the report for the period from August 1, 2022 to January 31, 2023. This is manipulation.

The fact-checkers of the VoxCheck project checked this thesis and found that the report refers to the situation with respect for human rights in Ukraine and in the territories occupied by Russia. During the investigation, the UN Commission recorded numerous war crimes committed by the army of the terrorist country. The UN report also identified specific war crimes, which include attacks on civilians and shelling of energy infrastructure facilities, deliberate killings, false imprisonment, torture, rape and other types of sexual violence, as well as the illegal transfer and deportation of children. However, the report did address issues of religious freedom.

Of the 38 pages of the report, several paragraphs were allocated to the topic of freedom of religion in Ukraine which took less than one page. That is why the thesis that the entire report is devoted to “discrimination against the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate)” is manipulative. Moreover, in the report, in only one sentence, they suggested that the activities of the state against the UOC could be discriminatory, and did not claim this as a fait accompli.

Propagandists systematically spread manipulations about the UN report to hide their crimes from domestic audiences and show that Russia is not the aggressor and is not to blame for anything. For example, analysts of Detector Media analyzed a manipulation stating that the UN investigation “found no evidence of the genocide of Ukrainians” during the Russian-Ukrainian war. We explained the message that the so-called “evacuation” of Ukrainian children is “not a war crime”. They also found a message that allegedly the UN Security Council “does not care about the suffering of the inhabitants of Donbas”.

Propagandists write that the European Union does not adhere to its own principles. Like, it encourages the UK to supply weapons with depleted uranium to Ukraine, but condemns Belarus for placing Russian tactical weapons on its territory. It seems to be the same, but the EU is only playing to substitute concepts. This is manipulation.

Analysts of the EU vs DisInfo project drew attention to it. They argue that propagandist material creates the false impression that depleted uranium weapons and nuclear weapons have the same effect. As a conclusion, the deployment of tactical weapons in Belarus is a completely different case. On March 21, a spokesman for the British Ministry of Defense stated that although Russia is trying to equate the status of weapons with depleted uranium with the status of nuclear weapons, this is not true due to the fact that weapons with depleted uranium are not prohibited.

Propagandists want to distract the world community from Russia's actions in this way. In particular, it is Russian troops who in Ukraine use weapons with characteristics prohibited by international law.

This thesis was circulated on social networks, in particular on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric. The reports say that the West allegedly confirmed that the residents of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions do not want to live as part of Ukraine. At the same time, the authors of the messages refer to the material of The Spectator, the British edition. This is manipulation.

The case was noticed by VoxCheck fact-checkers, who found out that the British edition of The Spectator did indeed publish an author’s column by Owen Matthews with the title “One  year on: how will the Ukraine war end?”. As fact-checkers say, the material itself contains factual errors and numerous manipulations. In addition, the author's column does not show the attitude of Western politicians to the issue of the residents of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, because the author gives his own thoughts.

One of the key factors by which the author “determined” the so-called unwillingness of the inhabitants of Donbas and the Luhansk region not to live as part of Ukraine is his own observations, not supported by any facts. In the column, he wrote that his post-2014 reports in the Donbas showed that “those who remained were more or less uniformly anti-Ukrainian”. And then he writes that the locals will perceive the de-occupation of these territories by Ukraine as a “coercive war of conquest.”

As fact-checkers say, there are no independent sociological surveys that would reliably show the correlation of political views in the region and the level of local support for Ukraine in order to conclude that the majority are pro-Russian.

This thesis was spread in social networks, in particular, on tiktok. Reports say that people in Ukraine will not be compensated for property destroyed or damaged as a result of Russia's armed aggression. The authors of the messages refer to the Law of Ukraine “On compensation for damage and destruction of certain categories of real estate objects as a result of hostilities, terrorist acts, sabotage caused by the military aggression of the Russian Federation”. However, this is manipulation.

The fact-checker of the project “Beyond the news” drew attention to the case, which established that compensation can be received precisely for destroyed housing, and damaged ones will be helped to rebuild either with work or building materials. The adopted law refers to two methods of compensation “in a special form”:

Monetary compensation to a current account “with a special purposes for the use of these funds” to finance housing construction;

A housing certificate to buy a ready-made housing or finance its construction.

As the fact-checkers explained, if people’s “manor-type house, garden or country house” and the same construction objects were destroyed, people can independently choose the type of compensation”: a current account or a housing certificate.

At the same time, if people have lost their apartment, compensation is provided only in the form of a certificate that will cover the construction or purchase of a new one.

In any case, the person will receive monetary compensation, but with the possibility of targeted use of funds - in this case, to compensate for the destroyed property. Funds can be disposed of by local governments, but this is not a prerequisite.

This thesis was circulated in social networks and propaganda media. Reports say the New York Post “has ditched” the permanent placement of the Ukrainian flag on its cover. Like, the last major publication does not want to place the Ukrainian flag on it. As evidence, the authors of the messages attached a screenshot of two covers of an American newspaper to the publication. The first cover shows the Ukrainian flag at the top right, but the cover of the next issue shows a clover leaf instead of the flag. This is manipulation.

The fact-checkers of the VoxCheck project investigated the case and found out that the cover of the New York Post newspaper with the image of a three-leaf clover is dedicated to St. Patrick's Day, which is traditionally celebrated in the USA on March 17th. In the future, the cover of the publication continued to depict the Ukrainian flag according to the usual schedule: six issues are published with the image of the flag, one without. That is, the publishers of the newspaper “did not abandon” the Ukrainian flag, it was rescheduled to be replaced in only one issue, which was dedicated to the celebration of St. Patrick's Day. For example, in the March 20 issue of the newspaper (the latest available at the time of publication), the flag of Ukraine was again placed.

This information was disseminated by the Russian propaganda media. Like, since the Ukrainian authorities are atheists, they will deny access to the holy relics in the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra starting from March 21. In their messages, the propagandists refer to the video of Klyment, a head of the Synodal information and education department, metropolitan of Nizhyn and Pryluky, which appeared on the telegram channel of the UOC-MP. Klyment stated that on March 20, the monastery received a letter from the leadership of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra national reserve with a message that the museum would now stop access to the Near and Far Caves due to the work of the commission, which will determine the level of safety of cultural values. The priest called this approach of the Ukrainian authorities “atheistic”. However, this is manipulation.

In fact, it is not about closing access to the caves forever but checking the caves of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra and their temporary closure for parishioners. Such actions are held completely in accordance with the law and are not an “atheistic approach”.

The fact checkers of the StopFake project drew attention to the case. According to them, a commission is working on the territory of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra reserve to check the availability, storage conditions and state of preservation of cultural values. The monastery is located on the territory of the National Reserve on the basis of an agreement for the free use by a religious organization of religious buildings and other property that is state property. This agreement expires on March 29, 2023. “The check of the state commission should be completed on May 15 this year, and the caves of the Lavra will again be open to parishioners”, the fact-checkers said in a statement.

However, with the help of such fakes, Russian propaganda seeks to once again expose the Ukrainian authorities as unprofessional. Like, the authorities violate the law because of their atheistic views.

In the Kremlin propaganda media, there were reports that the planes transferred to Ukraine by Poland and Slovakia are not effective in combat conditions. Like, this was recognized by the leadership of the Air Force of Ukraine. In their messages, propagandists refer to the words of the speaker of the Air Force, Yurii Ihnat, on the air of the Rada TV channel. Propaganda theses about the inefficiency of the aircraft appeared against the backdrop of news about the transfer of MIG-29 aircraft to Ukraine.

In fact, according to StopFake, the Russian media took out of context a quote from the representative of the command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Yurii Ihnat. He did not say that planes from Poland and Slovakia were ineffective. Ihnat said that these planes would help Ukraine on the battlefield while patrolling the airspace, covering strike groups of Ukrainian bombers and other cases.

However, by spreading such fakes, Russian propaganda seeks to create the appearance that Ukraine's partners let Ukraine down, because they are sending unnecessary weapons that allegedly will not help the Ukrainian army in any way.

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

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

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

This thesis was circulated on social networks, in particular on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric. During a speech by U.S. Director of National Intelligence Avril Gaines, she allegedly called the war for Ukraine “already lost” and that it had “no chance” of defeating Russia. Like, the director recounted the results of the US intelligence report. The authors of the messages add that the US is preparing Ukraine for “the worst-case scenario”. This is manipulation.

The fact-checkers of the StopFake project drew attention to the case, and investigated that the propagandists distorted the context of the statement of the Director of National Intelligence of the United States, because there were no results on the “loss of Ukraine” in the report. As analysts explain, the document, on the contrary, notes that Russia is suffering heavy losses on the battlefield, and its stockpiles of weapons are being depleted - these factors make the Russian army vulnerable. That is, in the report itself, they emphasized the fact of the military weakening of Russia, the fact-checkers noted.

As to the statement by Avril Gaines, she did not speak about the loss of Ukraine either. She noted that indeed the Russian aggression against Ukraine is “exhausting and protracted”, but immediately cited facts indicating the weakening of Russia at the front.

By spreading such a message, propagandists want to convince that Western partners are desperate in Ukraine and at the same time do not support it, because it will soon lose. Thus, the authors are trying to sow panic among Ukrainians in order to destabilize moods and discredit Western partners in the eyes of Ukrainians.

We recall that Detector Media previously denied fakes designed to discredit the Ukrainian authorities or Western partners in the eyes of Ukrainians. For example, analysts refuted the statement of Bill Gates, who said that the current leadership of Ukraine is one of the worst in the world. They also explained the manipulation in which propagandists claimed that Ukraine would soon become uninhabitable due to losing the war.

This thesis was circulated on social networks, in particular on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric. Reports say that during an address by Joseph Biden to members of the International Association of Firefighters, he said that “the doctors were checking his skull to see if there was a brain”. As evidence, a video of the appeal itself is added to the publication, where such a statement can be heard. This is manipulation.

The case was investigated by the fact-checkers of the VoxCheck project, who found out that the propagandists took the words of the US President out of context, then distorted its meaning. As the checkers explain the fact, a recording of this Biden speech was published on the White House YouTube channel. The President of the United States told how firefighters saved his life. At first, he told a joke that the doctors were looking for his brain, but Biden continued to tell the real story. “I came back from a trip, after being away for a couple of days, and — I had these terrible headaches.  I was diagnosed with having a — well, anyway.  They had to take the top of my head off a couple times, see if I had a brain”, he said. Talking about the brain, Biden laughed. Then he said “all kidding aside, what happened was..” and he went on to tell the real story. That is, Joe Biden told a joke, which he said later. However, the propagandists cut out this moment from the video and did not explain that it was a joke.

Propagandists systematically spread fakes about Ukrainian partners in order to discredit them. Thus, Russian propaganda uses the ridicule tactics and tries to create the illusion that Ukrainian partners are despised.

We recall that Detector Media denied a number of fakes about US President Joe Biden, in particular about Biden's alleged fall from an airplane during a visit to Warsaw or about his statement, which claimed that Putin could not be defeated. Analysts also denied the fake about Biden’s meeting with Zelenskyi’s “double” in Kyiv and, against the backdrop of the meeting, explained that representatives of local authorities did not create any instructions “how to deal with an American during a meeting”.

What Russian propagandists wrote about Joe Biden's visit to Kyiv can be read here.

This thesis was widespread in the foreign segment of social networks and the media. Reports say that the UN report found no evidence of genocide among Ukrainians. Like, one of the members of the UN Commission confirmed this. Subsequently, the information was intercepted by propagandists and distributed in the pro-Russian segment of social networks, in particular, telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric. This is manipulation.

The case was investigated by the fact-checkers of the NotaYenota project, who found out that the report was not intended to establish an act of genocide against Ukrainians at all. The Commission was engaged in investigating violations and harassment of human rights or international humanitarian law. During the investigation, the UN commission recorded numerous war crimes committed by the army of the terrorist country.

The UN Commission has identified specific war crimes that include attacks on civilians and energy infrastructure, intentional killings, false imprisonment, torture, rape and other types of sexual violence, and the illegal transfer and deportation of children.

As the fact-checkers explained, the Commission's evidence indicates that the Russian authorities committed deliberate killings of Ukrainian civilians in the territories temporarily occupied by Russia. In addition, the Commission found numerous cases of rape, sexual and gender-based violence committed by Russians. That is, the report does not really talk about genocide, because the real purpose of the investigation is to identify war crimes and violations of human rights.

The thesis regarding a member of the UN Commission, who allegedly confirmed the fact of “non-discovery of evidence of genocide”, is manipulative. In fact, he said that the Commission had not yet found such evidence, but they would continue their investigation. At the same time, some foreign media, in particular L'Agence France-Presse, published the news on their Twitter that “the UN did not find evidence of genocide in Ukraine”.

Such a message was circulated on social networks, in particular on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric. Reports say the Poles are trying to poison the Ukrainians. Allegedly, chicken with salmonellosis was brought from Poland to Ukraine. This is manipulation.

The experts of the VoxCheck project investigated the case and found out that the State Consumer Service did receive reports of the export of hazardous products from other countries, in particular Poland. Products were exported from Egypt through Poland to Ukraine. So, the Polish company acted only as an intermediary between companies from Egypt and Ukraine. However, as fact-checkers explain, there is no question of a deliberate attempt at poisoning since, in general, the Egyptian producer supplied meat not only to Ukraine, but also to Latvia, Angola, Equatorial Guinea, Liberia and the Comoros. All recipient countries received a notification asking them to withdraw the received product from the market.

Thus, Russian propaganda is trying to sow panic among Ukrainians and discredit the export of goods and products to Ukraine. They say that Ukrainians are treated with disdain, and therefore they supply low-quality goods.

We recall that earlier Detector Media analyzed a manipulation that Kharkiv residents were being poisoned with foreign cookies, and explained a case about the importation of “rejected” rice from Italy.

This thesis was spread on social networks and in the propaganda media. The reports say that Estonia is a follower of “Nazi Germany” because the country's leadership has banned “certain ethnic groups” from carrying weapons. This is manipulation.

The fact-checkers of the “Beyond the News” project drew attention to the case, who investigated that the basis for creating this manipulation was amendments to the law on weapons, according to which, from March 15, 2023, permits for the issuance of weapons will be invalid for citizens of countries outside the EU and NATO. The changes will affect not only ethnic Russians or Belarusians living in Estonia. However, these categories will also cease to issue new permits. Innovations will affect about 1,300 residents of the country, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Estonia notes.

Estonian Minister of Internal Affairs Lauri Läänemets does not hide the fact that the restriction is a direct consequence of unprovoked Russian aggression in Ukraine and, in general, the policy pursued by Russia against countries that do not support the so-called “special operation”. In the appeal from the ministry, they do not hide the fact that there are indeed quite a few Russians or Belarusians among the 1,300 people. However, the restrictions will apply to these people not because they are Russians or Belarusians, but because of the countries' aggressive policies towards Ukraine.

By spreading this manipulation, propagandists feed the narrative about the existence of so-called “russophobia” – hatred towards Russians and everything Russian. Allegedly, xenophobic sentiments are professed in countries that do not support the aggressive policy of Russia. However, the so-called russophobia is a response to the actions of the Russian army, leadership and people, because the Russians are collectively responsible for the aggression against Ukraine, which they supported with appropriate statements or silence.

Such messages appeared in the Georgian segment of social networks. The reports said that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi compared the events in Georgia to the events in Ukraine nearly a decade ago during the Euromaidan period. The authors of the post assured that Zelenskyi made such a statement during one of his video messages and added that he “wishes the Georgians would achieve the same success as the Ukrainians did”. However, this is manipulation. In fact, as analysts of the MythDetector project found out that neither in the video fragment added to the message, nor in the full version of the appeal, the President of Ukraine made an identical or similar statement. He only expressed support for the Georgian people and thanked them for playing the Ukrainian anthem and for waving Ukrainian flags at the protests. On March 9, Volodymyr Zelenskyi indeed published a video message on his official Facebook page. The first part of the video deals with current events in Ukraine. In the second part, Zelenskyi reacted to the protests in Georgia against the bill on “transparency of foreign influence”. However, in the video message, Zelenskyi did not mention Euromaidan. He thanked the Georgian people for supporting the Ukrainians and noted that there is no Ukrainian who would not wish Georgia's success. That is, the authors of messages distorted the words of the Ukrainian president on social networks. 

This thesis is broadcast by Russian propaganda in the media and telegram channels. The bill on replacing the Moldovan language with Romanian in official office work was adopted in the first reading by the ruling party of Moldova “Action and Solidarity”. The reports also claim that the team of Moldovan President Maia Sandu is trying to divert public attention from pressing problems. That is why she raises the “historically difficult” question of language.

The case attracted the attention of analysts from the EU vs Disinfo project, who are convinced that this message is intended to nourish the Kremlin propaganda narrative about “the loss of sovereignty by Moldova” and “the installation of external control by Western curators”.

In fact, in the declaration of independence of Moldova, adopted in 1991, the official language of the country is Romanian. In December 2013, the Constitutional Court of Moldova recognized that this document has a higher legal force than the constitution, so the state language should be called “Romanian”. It is considered native by 82.2% of Moldovan citizens. In addition, the International organization for standardization has officially recognized the Romanian language of Moldova.

As for the history of the “Moldavian” language, in 1940 the USSR annexed Bessarabia, introducing not only a new political regime, but also a new language and Cyrillic alphabet. The local population of Moldova was declared as a “Moldovan people”, allegedly different from the Romanian. Subsequently, the Soviet authorities made attempts to justify the existence of a separate “Moldovan language and nation”, resorting even to pseudo-scientific interpretations of their Slavic origin.

Now Russia is using such manipulations to create the appearance that Moldova is a puppet of the so-called collective West. Propagandists are trying to show that the President of Moldova makes all decisions only under the dictation of Western curators. The Russian propaganda machine is spreading similar messages in relation to other sovereign states. Particularly in Georgia. A similar narrative regarding Ukraine has also been circulating in the information space over the past nine years.

Such information appeared in the Russian propaganda media. Reports say that the fact that Ukraine will not receive planes from abroad was allegedly announced by Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba. Like, Ukraine is already desperate and there is no optimism that fighters from partners will still arrive. However, this is manipulation.

As StopFake analysts found out, propagandists distorted Dmytro Kuleba's commentary to the German publication Bild am Sonntag.

In fact, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said that Ukraine, on the contrary, has no doubt that it will receive fighter jets from allied countries. However, he added that the acquisition process could take a long time despite the work being done.

Propagandists use such manipulation to reassure the audience that Ukraine will not receive weapons from Western partners to fight Russia. They say that even Ukrainian officials do not believe in new deliveries, so there will definitely not be weapons. Thus, Russia creates the appearance that Ukraine is allegedly losing the support of the West and will soon be left without any help.

This thesis appeared in Russian propaganda media and telegram channels broadcasting pro-Russian rhetoric. Reports say that Ukraine has allegedly brought the defense of the EU countries to a “terrible state”. The authors of the messages refer to the publication of columnists for the American edition of Foreign Affairs Max Bragman and Sophia Bash. However, this is manipulation.

This media really published a publication with the title “Why European Defense Still Depends on America” dated March 7, 2023. However, as StopFake analysts note, the Foreign Affairs publication does not at all state that Ukraine allegedly “brought the EU defense capability to a terrible state”. In fact, the authors of the publication write that Russia's military aggression against Ukraine revealed already existing problems in the defense of European countries, and that these problems also remain unresolved even after a year of war.

However, such messages are beneficial to Russian propaganda. Thus, propagandists create the appearance that due to the fact that the EU countries send weapons to Ukraine, they themselves are weakening.

Propagandists are spreading the news that the Polish government is forcing Ukrainian refugees to return previously provided support payments. Like, the Polish newspaper Rzeczpospolita published an article about this. This is manipulation.

Analysts of the Georgian project MythDetector drew attention to it. They found out that the publication cited by the propagandists really says that the Polish Social Security Service is trying to return funds paid “without legal grounds” to Ukrainian refugees. This applies to those who left the territory of Poland immediately after receiving public funds. Also, this practice only applies to payments under the programs “500+”, which is cash support for children, and “300+”, which is paid to cover the cost of school goods.

On January 28, 2023, an amendment to the Polish Law “On the Support of Ukrainian Citizens” was adopted, according to which payments stop being paid when the guardian or child leaves the territory of Poland and does not return to it within 30 days. Service Speaker Pavel Zhebrovsky notes that payments do not stop if these persons return to Poland within a certain time.

Thus, propagandists want to show that even the closest allies are tired of helping ungrateful Ukrainians. In addition, such messages are created to cause distrust of the Polish government and support the narrative about the seizure of Western Ukrainian lands by Poland. Like, today they help, tomorrow they take the money, and the day after tomorrow they are already in your house. Detector Media has already explored this narrative, which is present in a number of propaganda materials.

This thesis was circulated on social networks, in particular on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric. Reports say that Oleksii Danilov, during a speech for a Lviv TV channel, began to assert that “more and more Ukrainians are in favor of peace talks”. Like, this is “a dangerous trend for Ukraine”. This is manipulation.

The fact-checkers of the Center for counteracting disinformation under the National security and defense council investigated the speech of Oleksii Danilov and determined that the propagandists distorted the general context of the speech. Fact-checkers explain that the words of Oleksii Danilov were taken out of context, because he did not speak exclusively about civilian Ukrainians. He spoke about supporters of the “Russian world” and collaborators who could destabilize the situation in Ukraine. In fact, collaborators are circulating pro-Kremlin narratives regarding the so-called peace talks.

By spreading this manipulation, propagandists want to destabilize the mood of Ukrainians, because Ukraine is allegedly preparing for peace negotiations. The Ukrainian leadership has repeatedly stated that it is impossible to negotiate with the aggressor. At the same time, earlier propagandists convinced that no one needed the war, it was necessary to “somehow” negotiate. Allegedly, Ukraine has unleashed a war with Russia and refuses any negotiations, moreover, Western countries allegedly forbade Zelenskyi to negotiate.

We recall that earlier Detector Media analyzed a message in which they claimed that the United States plans to hold peace talks with Russia, since it is America that is waging war side by side with Ukraine against Russia.