Russians in the temporarily occupied territories continue to train teachers in schools, which are today cells of Russian propaganda, for the school year 2024-2025. The Center for National Resistance reports this.

Future and current teachers are instructed by Russian “teachers” from the “Knowledge” group. One of the tasks of this propaganda structure, which has existed since the times of the USSR, is to promote propaganda among educators and students in the temporarily occupied territories. Accordingly, the lectures focus on the importance of changing children’s self-identification and cultivating “patriotism” in them for Russia.

The CNS adds that according to international law, a deliberate policy of changing the self-identification of an ethnic group is a sign of genocide.

We previously wrote that Ukrainian students in the occupied territories are taught a subject about “Russian values”.

Russian propaganda is distributing publications accusing the Ukrainian Armed Forces of war crimes. As “evidence”, the Russians use the stories of people who found themselves in the territories of Ukraine occupied by Russian troops.

These people claim that the Ukrainian military allegedly shelled and looted civilian homes, burned homes, or opened fire on civilians. However, there is no evidence to support these words. This was reported by the National Security and Defense Council Center for Countering Disinformation.

By spreading false statements about “crimes of the Armed Forces of Ukraine” on behalf of the population of the occupied territories, Russia seeks to:

- justify the war she started;

- set up residents of the occupied territories against the Ukrainian Armed Forces;

- shift responsibility for the destruction of civilian infrastructure in Ukraine.

The Center adds that in reality it is Russia that is destroying Ukrainian settlements. It is responsible for the humanitarian situation in the occupied territories.

Previously, we have already recorded fake evidence of “crimes of the Ukrainian Armed ForcesЄ. Thus, Russian propaganda accused the Ukrainian military of threatening residents of the occupied territories and extorting intimate services from them, of taking children away from their parents in the Donbas in order to hand them over to pedophiles or organs.

Russian resources are again trying to manipulate the topic of the evacuation of children by Ukrainian military personnel and volunteers from active combat zones in the Donbas. Thus, propagandists are distributing an interview in which a local resident allegedly recalls a family of three children whose mother died, and claims that they were forcibly evacuated and then “given to organs or pedophiles”.

However, this is a fake, journalists from the StopFake project write. Such interviews are not supported by any evidence, but only by the words of people who call themselves residents of front-line settlements. Moreover, one can find news materials about this family on the Internet. After looking at them, one can find out that in fact the volunteers took these children to their relatives.

In March 2023, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine approved a resolution on the forced evacuation of children from such zones. “This is not about taking children away from their parents. This is not about the use of physical coercion. The legal peculiarity of the forced evacuation of children is that at least one of the parents does not have the right to refuse evacuation and must accompany the child during the evacuation”, Iryna Vereshchuk, Minister for Reintegration of Temporarily Occupied Territories, commented on the decision.

However, even with the advent of a mechanism for evacuating children from dangerous areas, police and volunteers still have to spend a long time persuading families to agree to leave. Some remain, and no one takes these children out by force.

Russia is conducting a separate disinformation campaign targeting Ukrainians living in front-line cities and villages. Its goal is to disrupt the evacuation, sow distrust in the Ukrainian authorities and incline towards collaboration. Previously, we have already analyzed a similar Russian fake that in Ukraine children are allegedly sold for organs or into sexual slavery.

The Kremlin continues to pour a lot of resources into propaganda aimed at children in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine. Thus, one of the tools for promoting Russian propaganda is the so-called “youth forums”, in which Russians and collaborators try to attract as many young people as possible, promising children great career prospects and obtaining “competencies for self-realization in Russia”. This was reported by the Center for Countering Disinformation under the National Security and Defense Council.

These days, in the temporarily occupied Berdiansk, Zaporizhzhia region, preparations are underway for the second “Young South” forum, where the organizers intend to bring children from all temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine. According to the occupiers’ estimates, 800 participants should attend the “forum” in Berdiansk, writes the Center for National Resistance. Russian propagandists from actors, bloggers and other Kremlin figures should also come there.

The real purpose of such measures is:

– ideologically indoctrinate children in the TOT, promoting hatred of Ukraine among them;

– strengthen control over teenagers and young people through a network of youth organizations;

– promote loyalty due to promises of illusory “prospects”;

– strengthen the influence of the occupation administrations on all spheres of life in the TOT.

Russia continues to implement policies aimed at changing the national self-identification of Ukrainian youth. For example, in February 2024, the Russians took Ukrainian children from the TOT of Ukraine to the so-called World Youth Festival, where, in particular, they promoted the idea of joining Russian youth organizations “on a voluntary-compulsory basis”.

The Russian occupiers systematically erect memorials to their fallen soldiers in populated areas of the temporarily occupied regions of Ukraine. Such memorials have already appeared in the villages of Rykove, Stavky, Mykhailivka and other places in the Kherson region. Specialists from the Center for Countering Disinformation at the National Security and Defense Council drew attention to this.

Usually these are plates with the names of the occupiers, stylized as Soviet monuments of the Second World War. Sometimes old Soviet monuments are repurposed as these war memorials. The opening of such facilities is accompanied by propaganda campaigns with the participation of officials of the occupation administrations and relatives of the victims.

The main goal of these actions is to reinforce the message “Russia is here forever” and try to legitimize the occupation. Propagandists strive to create the impression that “the land watered with Russian blood” supposedly belongs to Russia, thereby sacralizing the Russian presence. In addition, such actions are aimed at increasing the morale of Russian troops and the population, showing the “heroism” of the dead occupiers, as well as an attempt to impose on the local population the opinion of the inevitability and duration of the occupation.

The occupation administration of Luhansk, under the guise of “educating the younger generation”, is militarizing Ukrainian children and teenagers, preparing them to participate in the war on the side of Russia. Specialists from the Center for Countering Disinformation at the National Security and Defense Council drew attention to this.

They found out that for ideological influence, the occupiers are attracting Chechen fighters of the Akhmat battalion, who created a military camp in the Luhansk region called the Akhmat Academy of Friendship of Peoples. This camp is personally run by Ramzan Kadyrov and his close circle. The goal is not only education using “patriotic” values, but also training future fighters for the Russian army.

At the camp, children are indoctrinated and trained in military affairs, in particular, combat tactics, using weapons and assisting the wounded. The program includes intensive training, physical conditioning and special exercises aimed at developing other skills necessary to participate in military operations. In addition to physical and military training, much attention is paid to propaganda and ideological education in order to form a distorted perception of reality in children and subordinate their consciousness to the ideas of Russian aggression. This approach violates international standards for the protection of children's rights and makes them a tool for political and military purposes.

The purpose of such camps is to prepare Ukrainian teenagers for service in the Russian army and participation in hostilities against Ukraine. With the help of this camp, Russia seeks to create a new generation of “Kadyrov” — loyal adherents of the regime, ready to carry out orders unconditionally.

Russia continues to invest large resources in the ideological indoctrination of youth in the temporarily occupied territories (TOT), expanding the network of organizations specially created for this purpose. In particular, at the TOT, with the assistance of local gauleiters, recruitment is underway for the all-Russian community of children and youth “Movement of the First”, created on December 18, 2022 on the initiative of Russian President Putin. Outreach events are also held for local schoolchildren and students. This was reported by the Center for Countering Disinformation under the National Security and Defense Council.

As for the “First Movement” community, it is the reincarnation of Soviet practices of youth education - organizations of pioneers and Komsomol members. By resorting to old, proven methods, the Kremlin is trying to achieve several goals at once:

– ideologically educate youth at the TOT in the spirit of loyalty to Russia;

– prevent any resistance by controlling the mood of young people;

– integrate local youth into the Russian space;

– form personnel for administrative, political and military structures at the TOT.

This youth movement is part of a large-scale program to strengthen the influence and control of children and youth in the temporarily occupied territories.

The telegram channels of the occupation authorities are filled with messages about improvements in the TOT: repair of water pipelines and roads, drilling of new wells, infrastructure development. The Zaporizhzhia Investigation Center found out what really lies behind this news and how local residents react to it.

Manipulation No. 1. Restoration of roads in Zaporizhzhia region

The occupation authorities claim that since the beginning of the year, 106 kilometers of roads have allegedly been restored in the temporarily occupied territories of the Zaporizhzhia region. The so-called governor Balytskyi claims that special attention is paid to settlements where roads “have not been repaired for decades”. According to the plan for this year, asphalt should be replaced and laid on 265 km of roads.

However, comments from TOT residents on these channels indicate that the real situation is different. Verification of this information is complicated by the lack of access to official Russian data and possible falsification, so one has to rely on reports and comments from local residents. They note that the roads after the so-called repairs leave much to be desired.

Manipulation No. 2. Half a billion rubles for the Kuibyshev district

Each TOT district has “chiefs” - regions or territories of the Russian Federation who finance the restoration of occupied territories. The head of Mari El, the patronage region of the former Bilmatskyi district, said that by 2028 he will allocate half a billion rubles. This year, 138 million rubles have been allocated for the social sphere and utilities.

Checking the information shows that repairs are carried out quickly and without complying with standards. It is likely that we are also talking about money laundering.

Manipulation No. 3. Observation platform in Berdiansk

The reconstruction of the observation deck in Berdiansk is a long-standing promise of the occupiers. In April 2024, the occupation authorities announced the start of preparatory work. 105 million rubles were allocated. However, residents of Berdiansk did not understand who voted for the project. Even Ukraine’s opponents admit that its benefits are questionable.

The occupiers promise to complete the project by the end of 2024, but the site still looks like a wasteland.

The editor of the Locator.Media website, Oleksandr Pylypenko, explained that regional chefs send their contractors, through whom the money is immediately returned to the Russian Federation. Critical work is done superficially or not done at all.

Russian propaganda is trying to create the illusion of an improvement in life on the TOT, talking about new projects and renovations in order to justify its aggression against Ukraine. However, TOT residents are skeptical about such improvements. Work in sponsored territories is carried out by contractors from the Russian Federation, and the money is returned to Russia, which leads to insufficient or non-fulfillment of planned work.

Russian propaganda is actively spreading the statement of Yevhen Balytskyi about the creation of a new federal district of the Russian Federation in the occupied Ukrainian territories called “Novorossiia”.

This was reported by the Center for Countering Disinformation. Similar ideas were heard before, but they were not implemented. Also, after the start of the occupation, a “federal district” was created for Crimea, which lasted only two years.

With these statements, Russian propaganda is trying to create the impression that the integration of the temporarily occupied territories is at the final stage and convey a message to the local population and the world, supposedly “Russia is here forever”. This once again proves that Moscow does not intend to negotiate to achieve peace.

If this plan is realized, it will allow Putin to consolidate his power in the captured territories and tighten his control over local officials. Also, by unifying the temporarily occupied territories with other regions of the Russian Federation, it will be easier for Moscow to filter them and repress the disloyal population.

Life in the so-called new regions of the Russian Federation, that is, in the temporarily occupied territories (TOT) of Ukraine, will supposedly soon improve. These are the promises that residents of the temporarily occupied Zaporizhzhia region constantly hear. However, occupiers often make promises but do not keep their promises. The Zaporizhzhia Investigation Center (ZCR) has collected false promises from the occupiers, which have not been fulfilled in recent months. Its experts emphasize that checking the real situation on TOT is complicated by the lack of free access to official Russian data and possible forgeries. They rely on messages and comments from local residents. In particular, experts warn that these comments may be biased, but they reflect the actual state of affairs.

“New elevators” for Berdiansk residents

In February 2024, the occupation authorities announced that the occupied territories would receive 300 new elevators, of which 22 would be in Berdiansk. In March they even reported on the launch of three and the installation of five more. Propagandists claimed that these elevators had greater capacity and speed, were quieter, and were more reliable and safe. However, these elevators quickly stopped working. Local residents were told that their work required documents from Moscow, which were not available. They say that until the documents are completed, the elevators will not work. Residents of TOT are again forced to walk, and the occupation authorities were satisfied with filming the story and photographing it.

Marketplaces in temporarily occupied territories

The occupation authorities promised that large Russian marketplaces - Ozon and Wildberries - would begin operating on the territory of the so-called Novorossiya. However, the marketplaces themselves denied this information, saying that the TOT does not have the necessary infrastructure to open their branches. The closest place with operating online stores is temporarily occupied Crimea. TOT residents order goods from Ozon and Wildberries and receive them through private carriers, since some goods, such as medicines, cannot be purchased on TOT.

Medicine stock for TOT

A month ago, the occupation authorities announced that in the temporarily occupied part of the Zaporizhzhia region, the necessary supply of medicines had allegedly been created and now residents do not need to wait for supplies or order hard-to-find medications. According to them, over the past two years, 146 pharmacies and pharmacy points have been opened in TOT. However, TOT residents continue to search for medicines, especially those in short supply. Ordering through marketplaces remains a more reliable method than buying them at a pharmacy. Another way is to receive medicine through “transfers” from Ukraine and Europe. Thus, the promise of stock of medicines has also not been fulfilled. The occupiers manipulate statistics by announcing the opening of new pharmacies, although it is likely that they were simply re-registered according to the rules of the occupation authorities. For example, before the occupation, more than 50 pharmacies operated in Berdiansk alone, and “improvement” of the network was not required.

Promises to improve life at the TOT are part of the propaganda that creates the impression of a stable situation at the TOT, encourages those who left to return, and paints a picture of prosperity for Russians. According to ZCR, promises are made every day, and TOT residents are skeptical about them.

Deputies of the Servant of the People party allegedly adopted a law on the dismissal of workers with “connections” in the territories temporarily occupied by Russia. They say that this norm will now be used as a reason for dismissal if the employer simply “does not like” the employee.

However, this information is not true. Specialists from the VoxCheck project write about this. In April 2024, the Verkhovna Rada adopted bill No. 7731, which amends the Labor Code of Ukraine, and sent it to the president for signing. The purpose of such changes is to prevent collaborators from working at enterprises, institutions and organizations of strategic importance for the economy and security of Ukraine, as well as at critical infrastructure facilities.

Therefore, according to this law, employees must inform the employer about connections with persons who are registered or reside in the temporarily occupied territory of Ukraine and Russia. However, on May 16, 2024, Volodymyr Zelenskyi returned bill No. 7731 to the Verkhovna Rada.

Earlier, eight human rights organizations approached the president with a request to veto the law, calling such a rule “the basis for harassment and stigmatization of those who have relatives in the occupation, and people who are still registered but have traveled abroad”. That is, the relevant law has not yet been finalized and entered into force. In addition, according to the law, an employee who has not reported his connections to the TOT can be fired only if he or she  works in institutions of strategic importance for the economy and security of Ukraine.

The Center for National Resistance and the Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security reported that the Russians are trying to force Ukrainians to participate in voting for Putin.

The occupation pseudo-administration announced a flash mob called “The whole family goes to the polls”, in which participants must publish photographs of their families from “polling stations” on social networks. In this way, Russians hope to create the illusion of mass participation in the elections.

The Center for National Resistance adds that the occupiers informed all employees of fake government agencies in the occupied Luhansk region that participation in the flash mob was mandatory. You can also read about how Russian propaganda uses residents of (de)occupied territories and what to do about it in another material of the Detector Media.

In some schools in Mariupol, which is temporarily under occupation, brochures with anti-Ukrainian content are being distributed. This was reported by the Mariupol City Council and the Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security.

The postcards feature Russian propaganda clichés, namely Ukraine's “gay troops” and false comparisons. They say that Russia and its supporters are good, but Ukraine is a “wrong choice” and fascism.

The main goal of these materials is to justify and glorify the Russian occupiers and discredit the Ukrainian military. The main target audience of such postcards are children, which means that with their help they want to shape their civic position.

You can also read about how Russian propaganda uses residents of (de)occupied territories and what to do about it in another material of the Detector Media.

Russian resources are disseminating information that the situation in Crimea has been taken under full control after Putin’s decision and the actions of the Russian army. They say that this “ensured the preservation of peace and stability”. The corresponding statement was made by the ex-chairman of the Crimean State Committee for Interethnic Relations and Deported Citizens Smyrnov.

The Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security at the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine denied this information. In fact, the introduction of Russian troops to the peninsula provided not “peace and stability”, but occupation. In 2014, the Russian military forced residents of the peninsula to vote “correctly” for Russia. This is what is happening today in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine, in particular in Crimea. That is, we are not talking about “ensuring peace and order on the peninsula”, but about limiting rights and freedoms.

After 2014, Crimea turned into a huge military base, from where the Russians launch missiles at peaceful Ukrainian cities, where they store military equipment and conduct military exercises.

Read also: Turkey allegedly admitted that Crimea “is Russian territory and will always be so”.

Pro-Russian resources disseminate information that the decision to overpower the residents of the temporarily occupied part of the Zaporizhzhia region, who supported Ukraine, was made due to fears of lynching against them. The corresponding statement was made by the “governor” of the temporarily occupied part of the Zaporizhzhia region, Balytskyi.

In fact, this information is not true. This is written about in the Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security. The eviction of Ukrainians from their homes is not a forced measure, but forced deportation. This is part of the Russian campaign aimed at destroying Ukrainian identity. The mayor of Melitopol Fedorov said that the Russians are preparing a mass settlement of the occupied territories of the Zaporizhzhia region with residents from Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan. That is, the occupiers want to evict “undesirable” Ukrainians and move doctors, teachers, engineers, fighters, etc. into the housing taken away by force from distant regions of Russia.

All the statements of propagandists about “caring for Ukrainians” have nothing to do with reality - in fact, the invaders cruelly abuse the residents of TOT and deprive them of any rights and freedoms, forcing them to receive Russian passports and vote for Putin. We previously wrote that the Russians sent SMS messages to residents of Zaporizhzhia about supposedly evacuating the city, but in fact it was a fake story.

On the Internet, pro-Kremlin resources promote the message that “the city of Avdiivka, liberated by Russian troops, has returned home”. The Russians have already managed to film a report with the same name.

In fact, Avdiivka, like a number of other cities, villages and towns in Ukraine, never belonged to Russia. It is meant total destruction, genocide and terrorism by “liberation” and “return home” - the whole essence of the “Russian world”.

The Center for Strategic Communications and Security reminds that Russia is not here forever. Avdiivka and all temporarily occupied cities and villages will definitely be deoccupied. This is only a matter of time, which depends on many factors, in particular, on the military support of Ukraine by its partners.

This message is aimed at the internal population of Russia, the vast majority of whom will not even be able to find Avdiivka on the map. Such “statements” pursue purely propaganda purposes. Previously, we analyzed the propaganda message that supposedly Kherson is waiting for Russia.

Propagandists do not stop trying to justify Russian aggression against Ukraine, the motives of which are hidden under the narrative of “the need to fire Russians in Ukraine”. To promote this message, Russian media again claim that the residents of Kherson are supposedly waiting for “Russian liberators” and “supporting” Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Specialists from the StopFake project drew attention to this.

Russian media used the statements of the governor of the occupation authorities, collaborator Volodymyr Saldo, who cannot be considered a reliable source of information. Although the Kremlin calls him “the governor of the Kherson region of Russia”, this position is fictitious. In Ukraine, Saldo is wanted for high treason and violating the territorial integrity of the country. In addition, Volodymyr Saldo is under numerous sanctions from Ukraine, the EU, Great Britain, the USA, Switzerland, Japan, New Zealand, Canada and Australia.

After massive shelling of peaceful cities, destruction of civilian infrastructure and mass murder of civilians, the level of self-identification of Ukrainians reached its highest level in all the years of the country’s independence. According to an all-Ukrainian sociological survey by the Rating group, published on January 29, 2024, very high rates of a sense of Ukrainian identity were registered in the Kherson region - the majority of respondents called themselves convinced Ukrainians from a European nation. At the same time, respondents most often noted Ukrainian identity as a conscious choice, aggravated by the war.

Russia regularly shells every district of the city, killing civilians in Kherson and causing enormous damage to critical infrastructure. It was the actions of Russian troops that led to significant material and human losses in Kherson, which caused negative emotions among the vast majority of local residents. According to a survey by the Protection Kherson Society Foundation (2023), only 8% of Kherson residents noted that they were not injured as a result of enemy shelling. Every third Kherson family lost property due to Russian aggression. A third (35%) of Kherson residents had their apartment or private house damaged, 27% of respondents noted that their apartment building was damaged, and another 23% had their property damaged. Significant damage has also been caused to the health of Kherson residents: 35% testify that in their families there are people who have begun to suffer from mental disorders, 3% in the family are injured. However, the worst thing is that people are dying due to shelling of the city. During the survey, 2% of Kherson residents said that there were deaths in their families.

The majority of respondents believe that the restoration of Kherson should occur primarily at the expense of the aggressor state (79%), which should be punished for its criminal actions.

The Russian myth about the “originally Russian southeast” of Ukraine, which, according to the occupiers, should include the Kherson region, has never been confirmed by facts. It should be recalled that after the collapse of the Soviet Union, during the all-Ukrainian referendum on December 1, 1991, 93.13% of the residents of the Kherson region voted for the independence of Ukraine. Thus, they confirmed their desire to live in an independent and sovereign state - Ukraine. And during the 2001 All-Ukrainian Population Census, the majority of Kherson residents (82%) considered themselves Ukrainians.

Detector Media wrote that Russian propaganda is trying to create the impression that life is thriving and being restored in the temporarily occupied territories, while disorder reigns in those controlled by Ukraine.

On the eve of the presidential elections in Russia, the occupation “administrations” and propagandists are promoting the message that “85% of the population in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine supports Putin”. The Center for Countering Disinformation at the National Security and Defense Council writes about this.

The Russians also sent special detachments to the occupied territories of Ukraine to create the appearance of supporting Putin. Their task is to oversee the falsification of ballots and monitor the work of the so-called “election commissions”.

One can take part in illegal “elections” in enslaved territories with either a Russian or Ukrainian passport, ID card or other identity document. And this indicates the failure of forced passportization in the occupied territories of Ukraine. This was reported by the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine. At the same time, this is another tool of the Russian special services to identify “unreliable” Ukrainians.

Russian media continue to publish “analytical” materials on NATO exercise Steadfast Defender 2024. By spreading false narratives about “Alliance aggression against Russia”, pro-Kremlin media claims that the “real goal” of allied maneuvers is to “start” World War III and “capture” Ukraine. “In connection with the assessment of Northern and Eastern Europe, as well as the Arctic, as a potential site for the outbreak of conflict regarding the Union State, the United States and NATO countries are intensifying their military activities in this region”, Russian propagandists write.

Specialists from the StopFake project drew attention to the message. They remind that Steadfast Defender is a regular deterrence exercise in which troops from across the Alliance train in defending European NATO allies rather than attacking third countries. The exercises do not pose a threat to Russia, and certainly are not aimed at reproducing maneuvers to “occupy” the Arctic, Ukraine or any other territory or state. The planning of the maneuvers took place long before they began, and information about their conduct was transmitted to other states. No NATO country has ever attacked another state under the guise of military exercises - this is unique to Russia, which launched its invasion of Ukraine in 2022 in exactly this way.

The alliance, in light of Russian aggression against Ukraine and the possibility of its spreading to other European countries, has begun developing new defense plans in those areas that NATO believes Russia could use to launch an invasion. Therefore, the legend of the exercises involves the deployment of forces from North America and other parts of the Alliance to Eastern Europe in order to create the ability to counter a hypothetical large-scale threat to the allies.

The exercise involves approximately 90,000 troops from all NATO countries and involves more than 1,200 pieces of equipment, including ground combat equipment, naval weapons and aircraft. The maneuvers are multi-faceted, with allied forces demonstrating their individual and joint defenses on land, air, sea, cyber and space. Capabilities in various sectors show NATO's commitment to collective defense, regardless of the method of hypothetical attack.

This is truly the biggest military exercise in Europe since the Cold War, just as Russia's war in Ukraine is the biggest aggression on the continent since 1939. It was the Russian attack that became the impetus for the Alliance to mobilize all efforts to revise the defense plans of NATO countries. In February 2022, NATO member countries revised their Strategic Concept. The North Atlantic Alliance recognized Russia as “the most significant and direct threat” to security in Europe. However, separately for those who declare “NATO aggression”, the allied countries wrote out paragraph 9, which notes that “NATO does not seek confrontation and does not pose a threat to the Russian Federation”.

At the Vilnius NATO Summit in the summer of 2023, Alliance countries continued to develop new defense concepts to counter possible Russian aggression. These plans were not hidden from the public and were widely covered by the press. The summit noted that Russia's attack on Ukraine has forced NATO to strengthen its deterrence and defense efforts, as well as develop new regional plans and new force models using large numbers of allied troops. Now, during the Steadfast Defender 2024 exercise, allies are practicing precisely to improve their defense capabilities.

Pro-Russian resources disseminated information that on February 3, 2024, the Ukrainian Armed Forces dealt a “cruel blow” to Lysychansk, Luhansk region, as a result of which a two-story “bakery” building collapsed and allegedly injured “civilians”. In particular, gauleiter of the occupied Luhansk region Leonid Pasichnyk wrote about this on his telegram channel. The next day, February 4, after clearing the rubble, the Russians announced 28 dead “civilians” and blamed the Ukrainian Armed Forces for this.

However, already on February 5, Pasichnyk himself admitted on his telegram channel that the Minister of Emergency Situations of the LPR, Colonel Oleksii Poteleshchenko, was killed during the shelling. He received Russian citizenship in 2019, worked in the ranks of the so-called “LPR People’s Militia”, and in 2023 headed the Ministry of Emergency Situations in the self-proclaimed LPR.

According to the British media Reuters, based on the design and color of the shelled building, as well as the location matching the file images, an acquaintance was able to confirm the location of the video shared by the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations. On Google maps it coincides with the location of the Adriatica restaurant on Moskovska Street in Lysychansk. That is, the blow was struck not at the bakery, which is located next to the restaurant, but precisely at the Adriatica. Ukrainian blogger and journalist Denys Kazanskyi also writes about this, citing propagandist Anastasiia Kashevarova, who also claims that there were many security officials in the restaurant with the Minister of Emergency Situations of the LPR. According to her, they were celebrating the birthday of a “high-ranking man”. However, they were allegedly surrendered by local residents who did not support the activities of the occupation authorities.

By spreading disinformation about the shelling of a “bakery” and the death of 28 “civilians”, the Russians seek to demonize the Ukrainian army and nourish their narrative of “atrocities of the Ukrainian Armed Forces” against civilians on the temporary occupied territories. Earlier, Detector Media denied information that the Ukrainian Armed Forces allegedly fired at the market in Donetsk.

This information is published by pro-Russian resources and supported by “evidence”: a fragment of a video with an alleged comment by the head of Melitopol, Ivan Fedorov, on the air of a telethon. Basic Russian-made medicines are also imported into the territory of the Zaporizhzhia region in large quantities.

In fact, the Melitopol mayor did not say anything like this during the telethon, because such a video simply does not exist, and there are no comments on this topic on his official communication channel. This was brought to the attention of the Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security. The video itself was made using the deepfake method. It can be viewed here. The video shows facial expressions that are not typical for humans, a lack of speech pauses, and desynchronization of lips and direct speech. In addition, the video is of low quality, the date and time of inclusion are blurred. The last broadcast, where Fedorov commented on the medical situation in Melitopol, was on December 16, 2023. There he spoke, in particular, about the fact that the Russians are conducting medical experiments on Melitopol residents.

Thus, propagandists strive to assure that “Russia will come and restore order”. However, the reality is somewhat different. Considering the atrocities of the Russians in Bucha, Hostomel and Izium, it can be argued that this war is genocidal in nature, and Moscow’s ultimate goal is the complete destruction of the Ukrainian people.

• Read also: In Italy, a propaganda exhibition about Mariupol “revived” by the occupiers was banned.

Pro-Kremlin resources are disseminating information that Ukraine allegedly intends to deprive the citizens of all temporarily occupied territories (TOT) of citizenship. They say that this will de facto mean Kyiv’s abandonment of territories captured by Russian troops. In addition, propagandists claim that the commanders of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, who once studied in Russia, will also be deprived of Ukrainian citizenship.

The National Security and Defense Council’s Center for Countering Disinformation claims that these inventions of Russians have nothing to do with reality. Ukraine will never recognize the forced passportization of Ukrainians in the occupied territories. People whom the enemy forces to obtain Russian passports remain only citizens of Ukraine.

At the same time, the Verkhovna Rada is now considering changes to the legislation that will allow deprivation of Ukrainian citizenship only of those people who voluntarily received a Russian passport, thereby effectively abandoning the Ukrainian one.

By promoting this message, Russian propaganda is playing with the feelings of TOT residents and nourishing its narrative that Ukraine no longer needs them. In addition, in this way, Russian propaganda is trying to win over the Ukrainians in the TOT, saying that they have nothing to lose and this is “a new reality that should simply be accepted”. We wrote earlier that a network of propaganda lecturers was being formed in the TOT of Luhansk region.

Pro-Russian media are disseminating information that the security guarantee agreement that Great Britain signed with Ukraine states that the Armed Forces of Ukraine are actually part of NATO, and the goal of the “proxy war” with Moscow through Kyiv is to capture “six subjects of Russia”. Thus, in Russian news they named LPR, DPR, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions, the Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol.

The Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security reports that in fact, propagandists presented this news in a distorted form, that is, they manipulated the essence of the agreement. It stipulates that the UK will provide Ukraine with all possible assistance in protecting and restoring territorial integrity within internationally recognized borders, as well as helping to counter any military escalation or new aggression from Russia. The fact that the Armed Forces of Ukraine is developing and moving to NATO concepts and operational procedures does not make them military of the Alliance. The return of the territories of Ukraine temporarily occupied by the Kremlin to the control of Kyiv is not the “seizure of Russian subjects”, but the de-occupation of internationally recognized Ukrainian lands.

Let us recall that the UK became the first country to conclude a final bilateral security agreement with Ukraine as part of the agreements agreed upon during the Vilnius NATO summit. Security responsibilities are an intermediate step before Ukraine joins NATO. It should be noted that Ukraine and the UK will also cooperate in the field of information security and the fight against manipulation and propaganda within the framework of the agreement signed on January 12, 2024.

Russian propagandists and politicians write that on the morning of January 21, 2024, the Donetsk Mercury market came under fire from the Ukrainian army. Like, it’s customary in the Ukrainian Armed Forces to shoot at the market, even on a day off.

In fact, the Ukrainian military is not involved in these attacks, as reported by the Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security. The forces that are subordinate to the Tavria Operational-strategic troop grouping and sometimes destroying Russians in the Donetsk region, in this case did not carry out combat work with means of destruction. This was noted in the joint press center of the Taurian Defense Forces and added: “Donetsk is Ukraine! Russia will have to answer for the taken lives of Ukrainians”.

With this fake, Russian propaganda seeks to nourish the narrative that “the Armed Forces of Ukraine have been bombing Donbas since 2014” and allegedly continue to do so. That is, in this case, propagandists resort to reflexive tactics, trying to justify the atrocities of the Russian army. Previously, we refuted information that the Ukrainian authorities allegedly admitted that they would have to give up the occupied territories to the Russians.

An information attack in the form of mass SMS messaging is aimed at Ukrainians located in different countries of the world. The messages were created in the style of Lubianka linguists: next to the cliché about the need to work together “to revive Kyiv  Rus to harm our enemies” there are phrases like “take care of yourself and your loved ones” or “save the lives of people” - Russian propaganda and threat in one sentence.

The Main Intelligence Directorate notes that in addition to the provocative content with a call to help Moscow expel “American Satanists” from the “original Russian land”,  Kremlin intelligence officers add the cynical one: “from Russia with love”.

The purpose of this information attack is to intimidate, demoralize and disorganize Ukrainian citizens. If you receive such messages, we urge you to ignore them and think critically.