Propagandists spreading pro-Russian rhetoric on social networks are disseminating information that allegedly, during an IDF raid in the Gaza Strip, the book Mein Kampf by Adolf Hitler was discovered, which was allegedly accidentally left behind by one of the Azov military units while staying at an Israeli clinic. However, this is manipulation.

Analysts from the VoxCheck project drew attention to it. They found out that the original source of these statements is a Russian satirical telegram channel called “here is my Yandex wallet”. The authors of the channel define their publications as “a parody and satire of political reality, only verified fakes”. This “news” first appeared on the channel on November 13 and was circulated on the Internet, appearing to be true information. The photo accompanying this story is a screenshot from an address by Israeli President Isaac Herzog on November 12, 2023. In it, Herzog stated that the book Mein Kampf by Adolf Hitler was found in the personal belongings of a Hamas terrorist in the northern Gaza Strip. The Ukrainian military has nothing to do with this incident.

By spreading such manipulations, propagandists want to justify Russian aggression against Ukraine and “denazification”. Detector Media continued to refute other propaganda materials in support of “denazification”.

According to information distributed by propagandists, Forbes allegedly published an article that Ukraine has created a tank brigade that has limited combat readiness and practically no tanks. However, this is manipulation.

The analysts from the VoxCheck project drew attention to it. They found out that we are talking about the article Ukraine Has Formed a New Tank Brigade by David Ax, published on December 3 in Forbes. In it, the author writes about the 5th separate tank brigade (STBr).

He does not indicate the low combat readiness of the brigade or the absence of tanks in it. David Ax discusses the position of the 5th Tank Brigade, which was formed in 2016. He notes that the unit existed largely only on paper, but has recently begun to recruit and train, as evidenced by photographs published on December 2, 2023.

In his article, Ax also points out that Western partners provided Ukraine with different tanks, but in the photographs published on social networks they are not visible in brigades. However, he does not claim that the unit has no tanks at all, but only points out the lack of information about what tanks are used. The journalist also considers possible options for equipment that the brigade could be equipped with, such as the T-72, Leopard 1 or Abrams.

It is important to note that Ax does not use the term “incapacitated” to describe the brigade. On the contrary, in his material he draws attention to changes in the tactics of using tanks in general, pointing to their use as short-range artillery due to the presence of minefields and the use of drones. This modification of the use of tanks is associated with more complex combat conditions and the use of other technologies.

The 5th Brigade is part of the Reserve Corps. In 2018, the Commander of the Ground Forces of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Colonel-General Serhii Popko, announced that the 5th Separate Tank Brigade of the Reserve Corps was fully equipped with T-72 tanks. However, after a certain period, the brigade was demobilized, and only in February 2022 it was resumed. However, due to losses in other armored and mechanized brigades, tanks and personnel of the 5th Tank Brigade were used to replenish other units. Today it is known that in March 2023 the unit was restored again, it is equipped with equipment, and personnel are undergoing training.

By manipulating the texts of foreign media, propagandists want to strengthen the myth about the incapacity of the Ukrainian army, as well as the theft of Western weapons. This is not their first fiction concerning the Ukrainian Armed Forces — Detector Media has repeatedly refuted others.

Pro-Kremlin resources are disseminating information that they allegedly decided to start arming Ukrainian soldiers with shovels in case they run out of ammunition. According to propagandists, such a plan was allegedly shared by the commander of the 59th brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in a commentary for the Associated Press (AP). This is manipulation.

Specialists from the Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security reviewed this information. They found out that the commander of the 59th brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces actually stated that if there was a shortage of bullets, Ukrainian soldiers would kill the invaders with shovels. However, it was not said that the military leadership would give soldiers shovels instead of weapons, but about how motivated the Defense Forces are to go to victory: “Probably everyone is tired of the war physically and mentally. But imagine if we stop, what happens next? - the commander summed up. Ukrainians do not intend to stop fighting for their own state, no matter what the situation at the front.

Russian propaganda is trying to discredit the military leadership of Ukraine, saying that it doesn’t care about soldiers, so they will soon be sent into battle even with shovels, as long as they hold the defense. That is, in this case, propagandists are speculating on the expression “war to the last Ukrainian”, since it is obvious that it is impossible to resist with shovels against modern weapons. In addition, Russian propaganda creates the picture that no one needs Ukraine anymore, so international military assistance is becoming weaker. Previously, we analyzed the propaganda manipulation that Ukraine allegedly wants to refuse supplies of Western weapons.

A number of Russian media have disseminated information that the Bulgarian National Radio (BNR) refused to broadcast an interview with the Russian Ambassador to Bulgaria Eleonora Mytrofanova at the request of Ukraine. In their publications, the publications refer to a post by journalist Peter Volgin on Facebook. They say this is “an act of political censorship”. However, this is manipulation.

The analysts from the StopFake project drew attention to it. They found out that on December 14, on the page of the Politically Incorrect program on the social network, an announcement was published that the Russian Ambassador to Bulgaria, Eleonora Mytrofanova, would be a guest in one of the episodes of the program, the topic of which would be the effect of the destruction of the Soviet Army monument on Bulgarian-Russian relations; what needs to happen to end the hostilities in Ukraine”,  etc. The reason for the interview was the beginning of dismantling the figures of the Soviet Army monument in Sofia.

In fact, the decision to demolish the monument, located in the center of the Bulgarian capital, was made 30 years ago, but work began only on December 12, 2023, and then taking into account safety - according to the governor of Sofia Viara Todeva, the monument has not been repaired for 70 years, and examination showed that it was dangerous and had large cracks. Once removed from the pedestal, the figures will be restored and exhibited in the Museum of Socialist Art or another suitable location.

The dismantling of the monument caused a sharp reaction from Russia, and the press secretary of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Mariia Zakharova, said: “We consider the destruction of the monument to our common past as another hostile step by official Sofia, complicating the already stalemate on the bilateral track”. She threatened Bulgaria that “she herself will have to pay for the consequences of this shame”, and Zakharova’s statement was distributed on the Facebook page of the Russian Embassy in Sofia.

Against this background, the announcement of an interview with the Russian ambassador in the BNR program Politically Incorrect caused a protest from the Bulgarian public. The Ukrainian Embassy in Bulgaria has published an official position, which notes that providing the opportunity for the Russian Ambassador to Bulgaria to speak “is a kind of complicity in the Kremlin’s armed aggression and hybrid war not only against Ukraine, but also the entire democratic world”. Subsequently, the press center of the Movement for Rights and Freedoms released a statement by the head of the parliamentary group, Delyan Peevski, in which he noted that he considers the participation of the Russian Ambassador on public radio as “a gross demonstration of disrespect for national sovereignty, the pan-European position and values, as well as disregard for national interests of Bulgaria”. Peevski also called on the Electronic Media Council (EMC) and other bodies to pay attention to “prevent such a provocation on the national airwaves”.

It is interesting that the publication by radio host Peter Volhin, which Russian media refers to, does not contain accusations against Ukraine or the Ukrainian embassy - the journalist’s post does not mention them at all: “Delyan Peevsky denied the participation of Ambassador Eleonora Mytrofanova on National Radio. The BNR Program Council banned broadcasting an interview with him. Management said there was no connection between the two events. What do you think? The Ukrainian Embassy is mentioned in another Volhin publication in the following context: “I learned that Mr. Delyan Peevsky, as well as the Ukrainian Embassy, were very outraged by the appearance of Ms. Eleonora Mytrofanova as a guest in our program Politically Incorrect”. In the same publication, the presenter reports that “neither a deputy, nor a minister, nor a prime minister can tell National Radio what to broadcast and what not to broadcast. What will be broadcast on the radio is decided by the people working on it”.

These words of Volhin coincide with the statement of the leadership of the BNR, published on the media website on December 16, which notes that “insinuations about censorship are unacceptable and speculative”. “BNR, as a public broadcaster, strictly adheres to the principles of freedom of speech, objectivity and independence of media content, pluralism of points of view, in compliance with high professional and ethical standards”.

Propagandists spread such manipulations to accuse Ukraine of failing to meet freedom of speech standards. Like, therefore Ukraine is not actually a European state. But in reality, it is Russia that actually does not have the institution of independent media and is trying to adjust the media in other countries to its own interests, ignoring the basics of journalistic ethics. Detector Media has already written about how Russian propaganda is spreading in the Bulgarian media.

Russian media are interpreting the results of a sociological survey among Ukrainians in their own way, claiming that “Ukrainians do not need peace” and that “Ukrainians are drawn to battle”, even without the help of the West.

Such reports focus on the fact that if these results were true, then “Ukrainians in a single patriotic impulse” would daily storm their territorial recruitment centers to enroll as soldiers and, singing, go to the front to beat the “damned Russians”. Thus, the narrative is again put forward that Ukraine is ready to fight “until the last Ukrainian”.

The StopFake specialists found out that the manipulation was created on the basis of an opinion poll conducted by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS). It showed that the majority of Ukrainians believe that with the necessary help from the West, Ukraine can confront Russia and achieve an acceptable result. 87% of respondents expressed support for this statement.

At the same time, two strategies were proposed for Ukraine in case of a significant decrease in Western support: stopping hostilities while maintaining control over existing territories and receiving serious security guarantees from the West, or continuing military operations to put pressure on the Russian occupiers at the risk of Ukrainian-controlled territories. The results showed that 58% of respondents are now inclined to believe that even with a significant reduction in aid, the West should continue military action to put pressure on the occupiers, albeit at risk to controlled territories.

Propagandists spread such manipulations to shift responsibility for their actions from the aggressor to the victim of aggression, without mentioning that it was Russia that started the war against Ukraine.

Such information is disseminated by pro-Kremlin media and anonymous telegrams. They say that 46% of Ukrainians living in the front-line regions are in favor of ending the war without returning the territories. In asserting this, propagandists refer to the all-Ukrainian public opinion poll Omnibus of the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS), which was conducted from November 29 to December 9, 2023. However, Russian propaganda manipulates its results.

In the “BezBrekhni” (No Lies) project, experts worked on this case. It turned out that the majority of respondents - 58% - are inclined to believe that even in the event of a significant reduction in assistance from Western countries, military operations should still be continued to put pressure on the occupiers. Moreover, this should be done even taking into account the risks for the territories controlled by Ukraine now.

Still, in the south and east of Ukraine, opinions were divided approximately in half, with a slight predominance of sentiment in favor of continuing hostilities. Yes, in the south 46%, and in the east 47% of Ukrainians believe that even with limited Western assistance, fighting should continue. At the same time, 40% and 42%, respectively, are ready to agree to a cessation of hostilities.

None of the options says that any part of society is willing to cede territory. In the survey, there is the following wording: “The fighting stops with serious security guarantees from the West, but the liberation of the territories is postponed for an indefinite future”. That is, we are not talking about the surrender of territories, as propaganda claims, but about the fact that their de-occupation will occur in the future.

KIIS also notes that “in this case, the factor of proximity to the front line plays an important role. The south and east are significantly closer to the active combat zone, which largely leads to a higher willingness to cease hostilities in the face of limited assistance (although, remember, the vast majority in these regions believe that with proper assistance Ukraine can succeed)”.

By manipulating the results of this survey, propagandists are trying to influence the morale of Ukrainians - to sow panic, fear and uncertainty in the future of the country. Moreover, in this case, Russian propaganda also encourages Ukrainian citizens to rethink the course of the war, saying that “the long-awaited victory may not happen”.  Detector Media has previously denied information that the majority of Ukrainians allegedly want to capitulate.

This thesis was spread on social networks, in particular on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric. Reports say Ukraine is ready to give up Western weapons “due to supply difficulties”. The messages refer to material from The Wall Street Journal. This is manipulation.

Analysts from the StopFake project investigated this case and found that the WSJ material did not claim that Ukraine abandoned Western weapons precisely because of “supply difficulties”. This is an invention of Russian propaganda, because the leading theme of the material is how Ukraine, with the help of Western partners, intends to establish its own weapons production. Actually, the point is that Ukraine wants to start producing more of its own weapons. “Restoring Ukraine’s arms industry could help ensure the country’s long-term security and stimulate its economy, officials say”, the author adds.

That is, the material discussed the prospects for the development of our own weapons production and what caused this. At the same time, propagandists distorted the theses in their own way.

Using quotes from public figures, journalists, military officers, politicians and allegedly quoting Western publications, Russian propaganda is trying to convince consumers of disinformation of the authenticity of such an expression. Like, if a journalist from a foreign publication said this himself, he can be trusted, because he is an authoritative source although the authors do not explain how reliable the information presented in the manipulative publication is. This is how propagandists use the tactic of appealing to authority.

This information is disseminated by pro-Russian resources. Russian propaganda refers to an interview with the head of the Servant of the People faction, Davyd Arakhamiia, who allegedly said that Ukraine could have stopped the war by agreeing to the neutral, non-bloc status proposed by Russia. However, representatives of Ukraine “rejected peace” and “doomed hundreds of thousands of their citizens to death”. This is manipulation.

This case was processed by fact-checkers from the StopFake project. They found out that Arakhamiia stated that Ukraine really did not agree to the non-bloc status proposed by Russia, but there were objective reasons for this. Firstly, there is no trust in Russia’s promises to withdraw troops and not engage in hostilities with Ukraine anymore, and secondly, the Constitution of Ukraine should be changed, since the path to NATO is written there.

Throughout the war, the Russians have been promoting the thesis that Ukraine itself does not agree to peace. Thus, the Kremlin wants to show that the root cause of the armed aggression was allegedly the actions of Ukraine, which “provoked” Russia to war, and that in fact it was the Russian government that was the “peacemaker”. The purpose of such a narrative is to refute that it was Russia that started the war and that it was Russia that is to blame for all the crimes committed against the Ukrainian people.

Read on Censor.NET: 90% of Ukrainians are against territorial concessions to the aggressor, even for the sake of ending the war.

Pro-Kremlin media write that eight European countries sent 18 tons of humanitarian aid to the so-called DPR (Donetsk People's Republic). The publications say that assistance was allegedly provided, in particular, by Austria, Belgium, Germany, France and Switzerland. However, this is manipulation.

The fact-checkers of the StopFake project examined the case and found that none of the European Union states officially sent humanitarian aid to the so-called DPR. The cargo was collected by the organization “SOS Donbas” - its members, as experts write, are mostly Russians living abroad. This organization not only supports Russia's illegal occupation of Ukrainian territory, but also opposes international military assistance.

At the same time, the propaganda materials distorted the context and presented the information as if it was official humanitarian aid from eight European countries. However, these are only the actions of a pro-Russian organization on EU territory. For example, on the website of such a “charitable” organization they write that they “provide support to the victims of the civil war in Donbas”. And also on their website one can sign a “petition against the supply of weapons to Ukraine”.

Propagandists are disseminating information that the first mobilized teenager from an orphanage died during the fighting. In these messages they refer to statements by the “director of the orphanage” Olesia Chykel. Together with them, they used a real photo of the deceased Ukrainian soldier. However, this is manipulation.

Analysts from the StopFake project drew attention to it. They found out that the picture shows a native of the village of Oselia, Yavoriv district, Lviv region, 26-year-old Volodymyr Sachala. On December 2, information about the death of a Ukrainian serviceman and an obituary dedicated to him appeared on the official page of the Yavoriv City Council on Facebook. It was these photos that the propagandists used. In addition, there is no evidence in the original publication of the Yavoriv City Council that the Ukrainian defender is a minor child of an orphanage who was drafted into the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Official information notes that after graduating from the Ivano-Frankivsk School in 2017, Volodymyr Sachala joined the ranks of the Ukrainian army. Over time, he was demobilized and returned to civilian life. In January 2023, Volodymyr again joined the Armed Forces of Ukraine and served with the 24th Mechanized Infantry Brigade named after King Danylo. At the end of November, Volodymyr Sachala received injuries incompatible with life as a result of Russian mortar attacks. On December 4, the deceased defender was taken home.

In a comment for StopFake, Olesia Chykel, whom propaganda media called the “director of the orphanage”, also categorically denied the Russian reports. According to her, she is the administrator of a patriotic Ukrainian group on Facebook, where on December 2 she posted an official message from the Yavoriv City Council about the death of fighter Volodymyr Sachala. Russian media immediately picked up the post, but cut off the text of the message and came up with information about the “deceased orphanage resident”.

Propagandists spread such manipulations to reinforce the myth of Ukraine as a powerless state. They say everything is so bad at the front that children have to fight. However, in reality there is no mobilization of minors in Ukraine. Detector Media has already repeatedly refuted the fabrications of Russian agitprop on the topic of mobilization.

Social media users spreading pro-Russian rhetoric are circulating a video showing a huge line of cars to enter the Ukrainian ski resort of Bukovel. They add comments where they are surprised why the territorial recruitment centers - a military command body that ensures the organization of military service and mobilization - does not check car drivers. However, this is manipulation.

Specialists from the StopFake project drew attention to it. They found that the video in question actually dates back to 2021, before Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine had yet occurred. So, the video has nothing to do with the realities of martial law, which was declared in Ukraine on February 24, 2022: the territorial recruitment center representatives could not be among the queue of cars to enter Bukovel. The mentioned video first appeared on the TikTok social network. It was published by user Oksana Panchak (nickname – @zozuliaksenya). Her post indicates that the video was filmed in 2021. This video was used by the page “Website of Yaremche and Vorokhta - the main news and events of the Carpathian region” on Meta’s social networks to advertise the start of the winter season in Bukovel. The corresponding publication appeared on the page on December 2. However, the post states that the video was taken from the archive for illustration purposes. Further in the comments, the authors of the publication once again emphasize that the video recording was made in 2021.

Such a massive dissemination of a video from Bukovel with almost identical captions regarding the territorial recruitment centers and the conditional division of society into those at war and “for whom there is no war”, probably indicates a new disinformation campaign to split Ukrainian society. Recently, Russia has intensified information pressure and the dissemination of false information, which could undermine the trust of Ukrainians in the political and military leadership of the country, as well as divide society, including on the issue of mobilization. Detector Media  has repeatedly refuted other stories on this topic.

Propagandists spread information that, according to various estimates, in Ukraine, supposedly from 200 to 500 thousand people have already lost limbs, and 50 thousand Ukrainian military personnel have turned to the Ottobock company, which develops prosthetics. This is manipulation.

This case was studied by specialists from the VoxUkraine project. It turned out that the information mentioned was being manipulated. Firstly, Russian propaganda does not cite a single source from which the figures about 200-500 thousand people who lost limbs come from. There is only a link to the Ottobock company, which allegedly ordered prosthetics for 50 thousand Ukrainian soldiers. Secondly, presumably, the propagandists had in mind an article by The Wall Street Journal (WSJ), which directly quoted the German company Ottobock, providing data on the number of prosthetics ordered by Ukrainians. However, the article is talking about 20-50 thousand Ukrainians, and not just military personnel who lost limbs, and by no means hundreds of thousands. In addition, 50 thousand is a rough estimate based on data from the state and medical partners of the total number of amputees, but not the number of Ottobock clients.

Russian propaganda is trying to scare Ukrainians and encourage us to oppose the current government by exaggerating the number of compatriots who have had one or two limbs amputated. In this case, propagandists are manipulating a sensitive topic. Previously, we analyzed the Russian manipulation that in Ukraine they allegedly want to abolish disability in order to send more people to the front.

This information is disseminated by pro-Kremlin resources. Referring to an article from the TSN website, propagandists claim that the purpose of these actions is quite obvious: when teenagers turn 18 and finish school, they will allegedly immediately be mobilized into the Armed Forces of Ukraine and sent for a month’s training. After that, adults will be trained for “meat assaults” on forest plantations and positions of Russian troops. However, this is manipulation.

Specialists from the Center for Countering Disinformation drew attention to this case. They found out that propagandists resort to manipulation of information, since the TSN article is not about mobilization, but about military registration of Ukrainian citizens who have reached the age of 17. In addition, even the military registration procedure that was in force since 2016, but no longer in force, also provided for the submission of lists of conscripts who had reached 17 years of age. They were submitted to the district or city military commissariat by the relevant institution or organization.

In this case, propagandists manipulate information to sow fear, doubt and uncertainty among Ukrainian society. Thus, they also nourish the narrative that “grabbing” continues in Ukraine. Earlier, Detector Media released a large-scale study on how Russian propaganda is speculating on the topic of Ukrainian children.

This information was disseminated by pro-Russian resources. They say that Berlin sent the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine a thousand laptops as a gift to remove the issue of transferring Taurus long-range missiles to Ukraine. This is manipulation.

Specialists from the Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security undertook to analyze this case. They investigated that the very fact of a gift of thousands of laptops for the needs of the Verkhovna Rada was confirmed by the German Embassy in Ukraine, but emphasized that they were transferred “as a sign of solidarity and support”. The issue of supplying Taurus missiles has been discussed over the past months, but so far Ukraine and Germany have not reached a consensus on this matter. That is, the gift of a thousand laptops is exclusively humanitarian assistance, and not a payoff for missiles, as some pro-Kremlin resources tried to provide.

Thus, Russian propaganda wants to discredit international support for Ukraine and assure everyone around that Western countries are already tired of the Russian-Ukrainian war and therefore strive to end it as quickly as possible by any means. Previously, we refuted information that the Russians allegedly destroyed a Leopard tank with a German crew.

Pro-Kremlin resources are spreading information that the West has finally realized that Russia is not going to lose the war to Ukraine. Propagandists also claim that Western countries allegedly realize that they cannot compete with Russia in the production of weapons. In its publications, Russian propaganda refers to an article entitled “It’s time to end magical thinking about Russia’s defeat” by the online newspaper The Wall Street Journal (WSJ). This is manipulation.

The fact-checkers from the StopFake project processed this information. They managed to find out that propagandists disseminate only those theses that confirm the narrative that is favorable to them about Russia’s military and economic achievements. In addition, the Russians are distorting the true content of the mentioned WSJ article. For example, the conclusion that the West is unable to compete with Russia in either the volume or quality of weapons production is based on a single phrase in the WSJ article that Russia produces more artillery shells than the West. That is, we are talking about only one type of ammunition, and the quality of the product is not mentioned at all.

The most important thing, as the authors of the article emphasize, is that “contrary to all forecasts, Ukraine withstood the Russian attack, and in less than two years, wiped out an entire decade of Russian military modernization”.

The authors of the material on the WSJ also believe that the West responded quite effectively to the immediate challenges caused by a full-scale invasion, and provided Ukraine with modern weapons and intelligence data in real time, as well as the development of sanctions packages against Russia. It should be noted that the article also says that the war is dragging on, and therefore Ukraine’s allies do not have the right to rely on “magical thinking” that Ukraine will soon win and peace will come. Rather, the authors write, we should move to long-term strategies to combat Russia. Detector Media also previously denied information that the West allegedly revealed the map of its plans, where there is almost no Ukraine.

Propagandists spreading pro-Russian rhetoric in the media began to disseminate information based on an interview with the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi to the British publication The Sun. Like, he admitted that Russian aggression is “supported” by most of the world, and the interests of Ukraine are defended by “at best 14 countries”. In addition, according to them, Zelenskyi allegedly admitted “Ukraine’s inability to resist the military actions waged by Russia”. This is manipulation.

Analysts from the StopFake project drew attention to it. They found that in fact, the President of Ukraine, in an interview with The Sun, accused Putin of “fuelling a fire” around the world that risks spiraling out of control, and added that a Hamas attack on Israel was Russia’s “great desire”. According to Zelenskyi, Russia plans to continue destabilizing the situation in the world, and the Balkans may be next to come under attack. According to him, this will continue until the Russian regime is stopped and punished.

Zelenskyi did note that Russia does not yet “feel that the whole world is against it”, but he did not claim that Russian aggression is “supported” by most of the world. The UN General Assembly condemned the Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine by an absolute majority: the resolution “Aggression against Ukraine” was supported by 141 countries, and only five delegations - totalitarian Russia, Belarus, North Korea, Syria and Eritrea - voted against. In addition, on November 23, 2022, the European Parliament voted in favor of a resolution declaring Russia a state sponsor of terrorism for its large-scale invasion of the territory of Ukraine. A month earlier – on October 13, 2022 – PACE adopted a resolution in which it also declared the Russian regime terrorist. In addition, on October 13, 2023, PACE recommended that member states of the Council of Europe recognize Putin as illegitimate at the end of his current presidential term and cease all contacts with him. All these decisions of international institutions are the consequences of Russian aggression, which clearly demonstrate the unprecedented support for Ukraine by leading democratic countries.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyi also did not make any statements in this interview about Ukraine’s inability to resist Russia.

Propagandists spread such manipulations in order to personally discredit Zelenskyi and accuse him of betraying the interests of Ukrainian citizens. They say that the war must be stopped on Russia’s terms, and even the President of Ukraine admits this. Detector Media has repeatedly refuted the fabrications of propagandists aimed at personal attacks against Zelenskyi.

Propagandists spreading pro-Russian rhetoric on anonymous telegram channels and other social networks began to spread fake information that the Ukrainian language ombudsman Taras Kremin allegedly “admitted” that the Armed Forces of Ukraine were shooting at Russian-speaking citizens. They use a video with his quote, which is supposed to “confirm” such messages. After the dissemination of such information, StopFake decided to check this information. It is not true.

On November 21, Taras Kremin actually made a comment on the Ukrainian service of Radio Svoboda (Liberty), where he spoke about language problems within Ukraine. On this broadcast, the resource’s journalist spoke about the discussion that arose in Ukrainian society. According to it, one part of the population says that it does not matter what language one speaks if a person is a patriot of Ukraine, and the second part says that communicating in Ukrainian is still very important. It was these two opinions that the journalist asked the language ombudsman to comment on. To which Kremen replied that “with the beginning of a full-scale invasion, the factor of language is not only a factor of freedom, but also the security of our identity and culture, and this is a marker of “friend or foe”. According to him, soldiers from the front line have repeatedly said that where one hears the Russian language, the first reaction is a shot. Propagandists used this to make it look like they were targeting all Russian speakers, especially civilians.

However, if you look more closely at the quote, you can hear that we are talking only about identifying a person as “friend or foe” precisely on the front line. There was no talk about shooting at Russian-speaking civilians in the interview.

Propagandists spread such manipulations to strengthen their own myth about the oppression of the Russian-speaking population. They say that “protecting” this category of people is one of the goals of launching a full-scale invasion. However, it was Russia that turned the language issue into a political instrument. In addition, it attacks civilians in mostly Russian-speaking cities, which undermines the narrative of “protecting” civilians who communicate in Russian.

Propagandists spreading pro-Russian rhetoric on social networks claim that Volyn residents supposedly need to collect at least 200 liters of blood for the wounded in the 14th brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces fighting near Kupiansk. The regional media Volyn Post allegedly wrote about this. However, it was discovered that the data was fake, and speculation about “colossal losses” was not confirmed.

Analysts from the VoxCheck project drew attention to the case. They found out that in early November, VolynPost actually published an appeal for Volyn residents to donate blood to support military personnel. In particular, the Volodymyr Territorial Medical Association reported that the Volodymyr department of transfusion assistance really needs donor blood of all groups and the Rh minus factor. However, the original message did not indicate the blood volume or weight of the donor, and the screenshot of the news was edited.

In fact, the donor may weigh at least 50 kg, not 200 kg as stated in the fake message. In addition, the minimum dose size for blood collection from one donor is 450 ml, and this figure does not indicate the real need of the military. Therefore, the conclusions about “400 wounded” and “colossal losses” are unconfirmed.

The VoxCheck experts note that the donation system works more efficiently when donors donate blood regularly, and not just in case of emergency. Currently, Ukraine has a system of planned donation to maintain a sustainable level of blood supplies. The need for donated blood may vary depending on the circumstances, so the Ministry of Health, the Ukrainian Transplant Coordination Center and blood centers may use different communication mechanisms with citizens.

Propagandists spread such manipulations to create the false impression of Ukraine's failure on the battlefield. All this in order to force Ukrainian society to agree to end the war on Russia’s terms.

Russian telegram channels are disseminating information that Ukrainian soldiers are being pelted with the carcasses of dead animals during training in France. However, this is manipulation.

Specialists from the VoxCheck project drew attention to it. The Politico article “Inside the secret French camp where Ukrainians prepare for war” confirms the use of dead animal carcasses in training to create more realistic conditions. This is carried out to prepare the Ukrainian military for the smell arising from the decomposition of flesh. However, this does not have the scale that the Russians talk about. The training course was adapted according to the comments of the Ukrainian side, including the use of artillery, grenades and simulating various combat situations. Instructors try to limit the shock effect of the Ukrainian military upon arrival at the front.

By spreading such manipulations, propagandists want to discredit the NATO armies and the Armed Forces of Ukraine. They say that the situation has become absurd, and therefore Russia needs to be allowed to win. Detector Media has repeatedly refuted other inventions of Russians aimed at discrediting the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

Propagandists spreading pro-Russian rhetoric on social networks claim that Svitlana Tykhanovska allegedly promised to transfer Belarusian tactical nuclear weapons to Ukraine during her speech at PACE. However, this news is fictitious.

The fact-checkers of the VoxCheck project drew attention to the case. The primary source of the news is the satirical telegram channel “The Empire is very evil”. The description of the channel clearly states that its materials are a creative invention, and all coincidences are random.

Svitlana Tykhanovska has never made such statements. There are no reliable sources confirming this information. Her last speech at PACE in June 2023 did not contain such promises, like all her other public statements. Reputable Ukrainian and international media also did not record any reports regarding such statements from Tykhanovska.

Propagandists use satirical materials to ridicule those who express support for Ukraine and confuse the information space. All this is so that people stop understanding what is truth and what is fiction.

Propagandists spreading pro-Russian rhetoric on social networks claim that Ukraine stated that it was the military personnel who came to the reburial, and not civilians, who died in the village of Hroza during Russian shelling. However, this is manipulation.

Analysts from the VoxCheck project drew attention to it. They found out that civilians were killed in the attack in the village. Among the 59 victims was even a young child, 8-year-old Ivan Kozyr. Claims that about 100 military personnel attended the commemoration are also untrue.

Minister of Internal Affairs Ihor Klymenko stressed that the Russians killed 59 civilians with a direct hit from an Iskander missile, including pensioners, doctors, farmers, teachers, and entrepreneurs. Entire generations of families were victims of the tragedy. It was established that two traitors were behind the crime, who corrected the attack on the cafe. These are the brothers Volodymyr and Dmytro Mamon, who went over to the enemy side.

Targeting civilians is a war crime under international humanitarian law. The UN believes there is sufficient evidence of Russia's involvement in the strike, although Russia has not admitted direct responsibility for the crime.

By spreading such manipulations, propagandists want to shift responsibility for the crimes of the aggressor onto the victim of aggression and justify the Russian military.

Propagandists spreading pro-Russian rhetoric on social networks are distributing a video claiming that the body of a serviceman of the Ukrainian Armed Forces was found on the shores of the Georgian city of Batumi. However, this is manipulation.

A group of fact-checkers from the Myth Detector project have already confirmed the falsity of this information. It turned out that this video was filmed in the city of Sukhumi, and the body belonged to a local resident who went missing in 2022. It is recorded that the video was recorded on July 1, 2023.

At that moment, the body of local resident Aram Davajyan, who was considered missing since November 27, 2022, was found. This information was confirmed by “law enforcement agencies” of Abkhazia, a region occupied by Russia. After fact-checkers contacted the Emergency Management Service, it was established that there had been no reports of the body of a Ukrainian serviceman on the shore in Sukhumi.

Propagandists spread such manipulations to strengthen their narrative about the “large-scale losses” of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. They say that the war needs to be stopped on Russia’s terms. Detector Media has repeatedly refuted other manipulations aimed at directly discrediting the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

Pro-Russian resources are spreading information that the Ukrainian army has stopped attacking and gone on the defensive, and the Russian military is stretching the Ukrainian Armed Forces along the entire front line. In asserting this, propagandists refer to an interview with former Deputy Minister of Defense of Ukraine Hanna Maliar, which she gave to the online publication Liga.net.

Experts from the Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security developed this case. It turned out that the Russians manipulated Maliar’s words. In the interview, she made an assumption about the task of the Russians: to prevent the Ukrainian army from concentrating forces in a specific place. Also, the former Deputy Minister of Defense of Ukraine noted that it is the Russian army that is stretching its troops along the front line in order to exhaust the Ukrainian defenders and prepare itself for offensive actions. In the end, there were no statements from Maliar that Ukraine was no longer advancing.

Thus, Russian propaganda is trying to discredit the Ukrainian counteroffensive and assure everyone around that the advantage on the front line lies in Russia. Previously, we refuted the information that Valerii Zaluzhnyi allegedly ordered preparations for defense between Mykolaiv and Odesa.

Pro-Russian resources claim that the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, Ruslan Stefanchuk, made a statement that there “are not and cannot be any Russian national minorities in Ukraine, and their rights must be infringed”. This is manipulation.

This case was investigated by experts from the Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security. They found out that during the telethon, Stefanchuk actually said that “there are no Russian national minorities in Ukraine yet and there cannot be”. However, his words were taken out of context. The point was that representatives of the people who are today committing the Ukrainian genocide cannot have any privileges in our country on any issues related to their national minority.

By manipulating information, propagandists feed the narrative that there is “oppression of Russians and Russian-speaking people” in Ukraine, including to justify the so-called “special operation”. Previously, we wrote about how Russia blurs reality with the help of newspeak using the term “russophobia”.

Such information was disseminated on social networks in the Russian segment, commenting on the meeting of the presidents (Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Czech Republic) of the Visegrad Group, who discussed issues of international politics, including the Russian-Ukrainian war. The authors claimed that Czech President Petr Pavel allegedly explained during the summit of heads of state that the Visegrad Group was “ready to engage in aggression against Russia”,  and NATO would allegedly attack Russia “after the war in Ukraine”. This is manipulation.

The StopFake analysts investigated the case and found that there were no statements about NATO’s readiness to launch an invasion of Russia at the Visegrad Four summit - this is an invention of the propaganda media. The meeting of leaders was devoted to European security issues in the context of Russian aggression against Ukraine. The parties stated that Russia must bear responsibility for human lives and damage, and the four countries must “resolutely continue to fully support Ukraine and its citizens”.

Among other things, Peter Pavel said during the meeting that Russia is the main threat to the security of Europe and, accordingly, the defense Alliance. That is, the manipulators distorted the entire context of the officials’ statements and simply came up with profitable Kremlin theses.

Using quotes from public figures, military officers, politicians and other public figures, Russian propaganda is trying to convince consumers of disinformation of the authenticity of such expressions. Like, if the European leader himself said this, then he can be trusted, because he is an authoritative source although the authors do not explain how reliable the information presented in the manipulative publication is. This is how propagandists use the tactic of appealing to authority.

The Visegrad Group was founded on February 15, 1991 in the Hungarian city of Visegrad by the presidents of Central European countries - Poland, Hungary, and then Czechoslovakia with the goal of integration into Euro-Atlantic structures. After the collapse of Czechoslovakia, the official name of the group was the “Visegrad Four”, or V4, consisting of Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, and the Czech Republic. It was possible to achieve the European and Euro-Atlantic goal in 2004 - the four countries joined NATO, and on May 1 of the same year V4 joined the European Union. Currently, countries also cooperate in the fields of culture, education, science and data exchange.