This thesis was circulated on social networks, in particular on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric. Reports say that Jen Psaki, Joe Biden's former press secretary, said in a press conference that Biden would meet “rather with Yeltsin” than with Putin. Like, Joe Biden is already dreaming and the press secretary conveys his words. It is not true.

The VoxCheck project specialists worked on the case, and found that the propagandists' messages refer to the former press secretary Joe Biden, who worked until May 13, 2022, and is now a TV presenter on the MSNBC channel. Since at least 2022, she has not been able to hold any press conferences on behalf of the President of the United States. Moreover, no authoritative media reported such an application by Jen Psaki. In addition, the fact-checkers checked the official account of the ex-employee on Twitter: there are no such statements there either.

Let us remind you that the Detector Media previously denied the fake that Joe Biden turned to “invisible people”. We also refuted his statement, in which he allegedly said that he was “ready for negotiations with Horbachov”.

The allegation that the war in Ukraine was staged was circulating in the American segment of Facebook and Twitter. As evidence of the so-called staging, the authors of the message published videos in which armed men in military uniform with yellow ribbons on their hands enter the building, and a film crew is standing nearby and filming the scene. It's fake.

According to Reuters analysts, the video circulating on social networks is from the filming of the film “Nadia” in Latvia. This film is based on the story of a woman who lost her parents and partner and gave birth to a child during the war. On the Latvian channel RUS.LSM, they filmed a story about the tape, and also uploaded an additional video on YouTube with footage from the filming, where the cameraman and the bomb explosion are visible (36 seconds). Also, the director of the film, Artem Kocharian, posted a video from the filming process on TikTok with the hashtags “cinema”, “backstage”. In a few seconds, his video was being circulated by social media users and they wrote that “the war in Ukraine is like a Wag the Dog movie”.

Propagandists use such fakes to deny the war in Ukraine and discriminate against the Ukrainian authorities. Detector Media has already talked about the fabrications that the massacres in Bucha near Kyiv were allegedly staged by the Ukrainian military.

Anonymous telegram channels broadcasting pro-Russian rhetoric distribute photos of SMS messages with the Law of Ukraine on mobilization, and claim that the Ukrainian authorities have allegedly begun testing a system for issuing draft notices to mobile phones. And ignoring SMS is regarded as evading military service. It's fake.

The case drew the attention of specialists from the VoxCheck project. On the air of the Kyiv TV channel, Fedir Venislavskyi, a member of the Parliamentary Committee on National Security, Defense and Intelligence, said that the draft notification of mobilization in messengers is only being discussed so far. And if it is developed, they will send notifications to Telegram and Viber, and not via SMS, as propaganda writes. It is also important to clarify: if such a message comes in the future, it is not an official call to the military registration and enlistment office.

The Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine Mykhailo Fedorov noted that it is now technically impossible to implement notifications in messengers until there is a high-quality register of military servicemen, and a verified phone number is not linked to the register identifier.

Russian propaganda systematically parasitizes on the topic of mobilization. By spreading such fakes, Russian propagandists are trying to discredit the Ukrainian authorities and the army, and sow panic among the people. Previously, Detector Media denied cases that military registration and enlistment offices handed out draft notices and took away cars in favor of the army, and also began handing out draft notices to women.

Russian propaganda media are spreading a test-drive video of Stryker and Cougar vehicles given to Ukraine by the United States, where a voice-over allegedly says: “These weapons will help us occupy the territory of Ukraine”. It's fake.

Analysts of the VoxCheck project drew attention to it. They found that the original video tweeted by the Minister of Defense of Ukraine Oleksii Reznikov did not have a voice-over. Also, in the video of the minister, the inscription contains the word “liberate”,  and in the video of propagandists this word was replaced by “occupy”. Later, Russian media noted that the Ministry of Defense removed the video with the word occupy, but there is no evidence of this.

Russian propaganda is trying to discredit the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine and convince the West that the weapons provided by partners to fight the Russian occupiers are in fact being allegedly used for other purposes. Earlier, Detector Media denied the fake that weapons provided to Ukraine by Western countries fall into the hands of criminals in Africa.

This message appeared in the Russian propaganda media. According to it, the command of the Romanian Ground Forces congratulated the Ukrainian army on Easter with a postcard, which allegedly depicts a cemetery at the top. “Against the background of thousands of losses of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, such a greeting looks very strange”, the propagandists add. It's fake.

As StopFake analysts note, the postcard was not addressed to the Ukrainian military. Neither in the publication nor in the picture is there any mention of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and the image of the coat of arms of the General Staff of the Romanian Land Forces and its main element - the golden eagle - also has nothing to do with Ukraine. Also, the postcard does not show a cemetery. The three crosses that propaganda calls a cemetery symbolize the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.

Thus, the propagandists are trying to discredit the cooperation between Ukraine and Romania. Earlier, Detector Media wrote about a fake spread by Russian propaganda media that allegedly Romania claimed Ukraine to be part of it.

Propagandists spread information on social networks that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi allegedly owns a villa in Florida (USA) worth $35 million, a total fortune of $1.2 billion, 15 houses, three private jets and $11 million of monthly income. It's fake.

Analysts of the CheckYourFact project drew attention to it. They could not find any confirmation of the data indicated by the propagandists. According to Forbes, Zelenskyi's total net worth as of April 2022 reached $20-30 million. There is no evidence of private jet ownership, and his real estate portfolio is valued at $4 million. Zelenskyi owned a $4.6 million villa in Italy but sold it in 2020. Forbes Ukraine and Presidential speaker Serhii Nikoforov, in comments to AFP Fact Check in March of this year, stated that the propagandists' information on this matter was not reliable.

Thus, propagandists want to discredit the President of Ukraine. Allegedly, the Ukrainians are fighting, and he earns in the war. Personal attacks against Zelenskyi often appear in Russian propaganda. In particular, Detector Media has repeatedly written about fake covers of various world publications, directed personally against the President.

Russian news resources disseminate information that visiting the graves of soldiers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine is paid in Ukraine. They claim that in Drohobych in the Lviv region they are not allowed to go to the cemetery without making an advance payment. Like, in this way Ukraine wants to hide the real number of dead. It's fake.

Analysts of the StopFake project drew attention to it. They found out that the fake appeared on the basis of one video that was distributed on social networks. On it, the relatives of the deceased soldier want to visit the cemetery and refuse to pay, to which the watchman replies that he can only let the military into the territory. This video was picked up by Russian propaganda.

In response to public outrage, the Drohobych city council published an explanation of the situation. In particular, city officials claim that tolls were introduced to the city cemetery years before the full-scale invasion to curb excessive traffic and maintain order in the area. Funds from the collections are used to improve the general condition of the cemetery.

Thus, Russia wants to discredit the Ukrainian authorities and cause mistrust among the Ukrainian society. They say that the “Kyiv regime” does not honor its heroes at all. However, the neglect of military personnel is a Russian problem, as evidenced, in particular, by the widespread practice of anonymous and secret burials among the Russian Armed Forces.

Such information was disseminated in social networks, in particular in the Polish segment of Facebook. Reports say that Ukrainians will be able to vote in the upcoming elections, because they have the corresponding PESEL document. The authors of the messages add that the result of the elections is predetermined, and that “real Poles” should no longer go to the elections. It is not true.

The fact-checkers of the Polish project Demagog took up the case, they explained that the presence of PESEL does not give people the right to participate in elections: both to choose and to be elected. Powszechny Elektroniczny System Ewidencji Ludności (PESEL), that is, the Universal Electronic Population Registration System, is an eleven-digit numeric character that identifies an individual. However, the possession of PESEL does not guarantee the citizenship of the country, and the person does not acquire it upon receipt of this document. And only citizens of Poland can vote in parliamentary or presidential elections.

A foreigner can obtain Polish citizenship after fulfilling a number of conditions, in particular, a certain period of continuous residence in Poland. And only under this condition, when a person acquires citizenship, he or she can vote. No other way exists.

Such information was disseminated in social networks, in particular, in the Ukrainian segment of Facebook. Reports say unidentified individuals attacked the “famous” Bishop of the Orthodox Church in Ivano-Frankivsk, Mykyta, and the attackers were not punished by the police. Like, the Ukrainians want to get rid of all the clergy in Ukraine. Moreover, these posts are advertised on Facebook, and videos are cited as evidence. It is not true.

The Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security explains that such information is not true. In the publication itself, the authors made lexical and spelling errors indicating the use of a translator. Some sentences in the publication are illogically constructed and do not correspond to the norms of the Ukrainian language. In addition, the authors of the messages do not indicate exactly which church the bishop belongs to.

Such fakes are spread through Facebook pages without a specific description and content. Usually these pages have neutral titles. Thus, the authors avoid additional moderation by Meta, which owns Facebook. So, analysts urge to complain about such manifestations of advertising.

In one of our case investigations, we previously described in more detail how Russian bots use Facebook ads to spread anti-Ukrainian narratives.

Such information was disseminated in social networks, in particular, on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric. French brand Louis Vuitton, as part of its advertising campaign, has reportedly posted a story on Instagram “learn geography” in Ukrainian language. Like, this is the answer of the fashion house to the indignation of Ukrainians regarding the choice of colors for the advertising campaign. As evidence, the authors of the messages add a screenshot from the Louis Vuitton articles to the publications. It is not true.

The fact-checkers of the VoxCheck project investigated this case and found that the screenshot was edited using a graphics editor. As fact-checkers say, they find such a “screenshot” only in the Russian segment of social networks. At the same time, Louis Vuitton did not comment on the reactions of the Ukrainians.

In their #LVFW23 advertising campaign, the fashion house presented the flag in the colors of the national flag of France (blue, white and red). They also added black, which is captured in the brand's signature letter “V”. Propagandists immediately began to say that France supports Russia and the so-called DNR, which uses the same colors in its advertising campaign. However, the fashion house did not comment on the decision to create such an advertising campaign.

Such information was disseminated in social networks, in particular, on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric. The reports say that the Lviv regional state administration “ordered” employees of budgetary institutions to donate blood for the needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Like, if they don’t donate blood, they “remain without a bonus”. As evidence of the publication, the authors of the messages cite an announcement-order, which, they say, is placed in state institutions for workers. In addition, propagandists add a screenshot of the correspondence on the telegram, where the user comments on the message of the local telegram channel and claims that “Lviv residents are forced to donate blood”. It is not true.

The specialists of the VoxCheck project worked on the case, and found that the order itself did not mention forced blood donation. It notes that blood can be donated voluntarily, not forced. Fact-checkers did not verify the authenticity of the order itself, however, reliable and relevant information is posted there. The authors of the messages simply came up with a different content for the “forced” order. According to Ukrainian legislation, blood donation is exclusively voluntary. That is, a person cannot be forced to donate blood, since the patient gives written consent before the procedure. The questionnaire can be completed online, however, according to fact-checkers, many blood centers do not accept such applications. In most cases, the patient must fill out the consent to donate in the presence of a doctor.

As for the message itself from the user in one of the local telegram channels, the fact checkers did not find this comment. As they explain, one comment is obviously not evidence that “Lviv residents are forced to donate blood”. Probably, it was forged and distributed in the Ukrainian telegram segment, and then deleted.

There is no significant shortage of blood in Ukraine, which means there is no need to force people to donate it either. At the same time, the Ministry of Health of Ukraine indicates that sometimes there is a need for a rare blood type, but there is no critical shortage. In April, the agency also said that thanks to donors, the daily supply of erythrocyte blood components has increased, but there is a shortage of donors with negative rhesus blood.

Propagandists systematically spread fakes and manipulation about the alleged lack of blood in Ukraine. Thus, the authors of the messages are trying to convince that everything is bad in Ukraine and that there are many wounded who are not being given worthy assistance, since there is no blood. We managed to refute several fakes on this topic. For example, one of the fakes said that Ukraine forbids all foreign citizens from becoming blood donors. We also verified the authenticity of a message on social networks that a Ukrainian woman left her husband because he was “transfused with the blood of Russians”.

Such information was disseminated in social networks, in particular, on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric. Reports say that the vain Zelenskyi is once again cashing in on the Ukrainians. This time, according to the authors of the messages, Zelenskyi “appropriated”  400 million dollars, which in fact the United States allocated to help the Ukrainians. As proof, the authors of the messages refer to journalistic material published in the “authoritative” media. It's a lie.

The case was noticed by the fact-checkers of the StopFake project, who found out that the thesis about the theft or misappropriation of money by Zelenskyi is unfounded, since the White House did not reveal any violations by Ukraine regarding the use of Western weapons or material assistance. As for the so-called “journalistic material” in the “authoritative” media, this is also not true. This material is published on the author's platform, where everyone can register and publish arbitrary messages. That is, the material was not published in the media, it is only part of the personal blog of journalist Seymour Hersh. At the same time, the information about the misappropriation of money in Seymour's material is not supported by any facts. The journalist refers to sources anonymous to him. Consequently, the fact of misappropriation has not been proven, and the journalist expressed his own opinions and observations.

By spreading this fake, propagandists seek to once again discredit Zelenskyi and show that he does not care about Ukraine and Ukrainians. Allegedly, Volodymyr Zelenskyi is looking for profit in the war and earns on it. In this way, Russian propaganda wants to cause people to distrust high-ranking officials who are dismissive of Ukrainians.

Let us remind you that analysts of Detector Media recently refuted a fake about Zelenskyi having 10 “golden trains”, on one of which he travels to Poland.

Anonymous telegram channels broadcasting pro-Russian rhetoric are distributing a video in which the Ukrainian military allegedly forcibly seize cars “for the needs of the army” from residents of the village of Stare Selo (Old Village), Rivne region. Some telegram channels also write that the military registration and enlistment office representatives have surrounded one of the villages in the Rivne region and are distributing draft notices. The video shows a confrontation among policemen, people in camouflage and civilians. It's fake.

This case was noticed by the fact-checkers of the StopFake project. They determined that the event recorded on the video took place in the village of Stare Selo (Old Village) on April 7 and the event did not concern the service of draft notices or the confiscation of cars for the needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. According to the press service of the National police in the Rivne region, the National police, together with the National guardsmen and representatives of the Regional security service, conducted 9 searches at the places of residence of those involved in criminal proceedings opened on the facts of illegal mining of amber, illegal handling of weapons and ammunition. In the video, we see how “the police seized 5 kilograms of amber, vehicles and other material evidence relevant to the case”.

By spreading this fake, Russian propagandists are trying to discredit the Ukrainian authorities and the army. Analysts of Detector Media have repeatedly analyzed cases related to Ukrainian mobilization. For example, they refuted the case that the Ukrainian media allegedly published an infographic that shows the percentage of mobilized citizens in the regions of Ukraine.

Similar theses were heard on the air of Russian propaganda TV channels. Like, Biden came on a visit to Ireland and the UK and seemed to pass by the British Prime Minister, “disparagingly waving to Rishi Sunak, mistaking him either for a lackey, or for a bearer. Instead of the prime minister, he greeted a general”. It's fake.

The Insider drew attention to the fake. In the story itself, the Russian correspondent notes that it was not some kind of general, but a lord lieutenant, and they were not at the airfield, but at Belfast International Airport. Chicago Sun-Times journalist Rummana Hussain points out in one of her articles that the video has been edited. In fact, in the full video, Joe Biden briefly spoke to Rishi Sunak and shook his hand before going to say hello to other officials.

As Rummana Hussain writes, “Right-wing Americans were suddenly crying racism, outraged that the Democrat Biden had the audacity to snub a Brown man. Some on the left who also fell for the deceptive footage were equally perplexed”.

By spreading such fakes, the propagandists want to once again discredit the US President, accuse him of racism and convince everyone that he is “behaving inappropriately”. Earlier, Detector Media denied a number of fakes about Joe Biden, in particular, that he allegedly asked the “invisible man” not to jump during his speech.

This message appeared in the Russian propaganda media. According to it, the Hungarians not only asked to be protected from the Ukrainian genocide, but also seemed to have begun preparations for a referendum for the annexation of certain regions of Ukraine to Hungary. With a request to create Carpathian Rus in the west of Ukraine, the Transcarpathian Rusyns and Petro Hetsko, the head of the international center “Matytsia of the Rusyns”, allegedly turned to Moscow. It's fake.

As StopFake analysts note, the Russian news itself does not talk about Hungarians, but about Rusyns. Also, these statements are fake, because they were made by Petro Hetsko, the head of the international center “Matytsia of the Rusyns”, who does not represent the interests of the Rusyns in Ukraine, has been in Russia since 2014 and has been put on the international wanted list. In 2019, he was sentenced to 12 years in prison because he campaigned for changing the territorial integrity of Ukraine.

Thus, propagandists are trying to spread the opinion that Ukraine will disintegrate in the near future, and its territories will be taken over by Western countries. Earlier, Detector Media wrote about a fake spread by Russian officials that Poland would soon take over the west part of Ukraine.

Such information was disseminated in social networks, in particular, on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric. Reports say British weekly newspaper The New European has published a cover purporting to show Volodymyr Zelenskyi sitting on the Dalai Lama's lap with a disgruntled British prime minister standing by. Also, on the cover there is the inscription: “How much money is a Briton willing to pay to end the “Ukrainian crisis””. This is not true.

The fact-checkers of the Center for Counteracting Disinformation under the National Security and Defense Council drew attention to the case, and determined that such a cover does not exist. Fact-checkers went to the official website of the publication and found that the indicated number of the newspaper on the fake cover (No. 337) had not even been published yet. Now on the official website there is only a newspaper under the number 336.

Propagandists systematically spread fake stories about Ukrainian officials, in particular Zelenskyi, in order to discredit him. Thus, Russian propaganda uses the tactics of ridicule and tries to create the illusion that the leadership of Ukraine is despised in Europe. Previously, propagandists spread messages about fake graffiti with Zelenskyi in public places, fake magazine covers, etc.

For example, earlier analysts of Detector Media refuted the fake about another cover with the image of Zelenskyi who was numb from the evil Jesus and Putin.

Such information was disseminated in social networks, in particular, on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric. Reports say that the Orthodox Church of Ukraine refuses to recognize the church rituals of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate. Like, even burials according to the customs of the UOC-MP are no longer recognized. As proof, the authors of the messages add a photo of the announcement posted in front of the cemetery. It states that the costs associated with reburial, according to the new requirements of the church, must be borne by the relatives of the deceased. It is not true.

The case was taken up by the fact-checkers of the project “Beyond the News”, who found out that there was no information from the Orthodox Church of Ukraine about objections to the rites of the UOC-MP. Therefore, as the fact-checkers say, the information on the “announcement” is not true. However, the fact-checkers were not able to see the signs of photoshop in the photo, so it is likely that the unknown person actually made an “announcement” and photographed it against the background of the cemetery.

At the same time, analysts note that the Orthodox Church of Ukraine does recognize the rites of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate, while the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate denies the sacraments of the OCU. The Metropolitan of the Russian Church, in particular, recommends rebaptizing those people who “have not been baptized in a real Orthodox Church”.

Such information was disseminated in social networks, in particular, on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Kremlin rhetoric. Reports say that Dmytro Kuleba is “afraid” of the victory of Russian and Belarusian tennis players at Wimbledon, as the tournament authorities recently lifted the ban on the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes. Like, Dmytro Kuleba “banned” Russian and Belarusian female tennis players from defeating Ukrainian women. As evidence, the authors of the messages refer to the material of the British edition of Express. It is not true.

The experts of the StopFake project drew attention to the case and found that this quote was invented. In a commentary to Express, Kuleba noted that the admission of Russian and Belarusian tennis players to Wimbledon would be a victory for Russian propaganda and a sign that the West “can be shaken”.

Tennis players from Russia and Belarus will be able to play at the Wimbledon tournament in 2023. The decision to admit athletes was made by the organizer of the tournament, the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club (AELTC). At the same time, only neutral athletes will be allowed to compete in the tournament, and only those who do not receive any state funding from Russia or Belarus. First of all, athletes should not support Russia's invasion of Ukraine. According to the BBC, the players and their team members will sign an appropriate declaration with the specified conditions of participation. Violation of the declaration entails a fine or disqualification.

Such information is disseminated in social networks and the Kremlin media. A cropped video of US President Joe Biden is added to the messages, where he allegedly addresses someone invisible and asks him to “stop jumping”. The reports also say that “Biden should definitely be elected for a second term, because he clearly hears voices from the other world, sees ghosts and hears entities”. It's fake.

The StopFake fact-checkers drew attention to the case. They found a video of a Joe Biden speech at the University of Ulster (Northern Ireland), filmed by GB News. The cameraman filmed the President of the United States in close and long shots. In the close-up shot, Biden can be seen addressing people as they stood on the floors above the banner. That is, it is obvious that the President of the United States does not communicate with himself.

However, Russia needs such fakes in order to discredit the US president and convince everyone that he is “behaving inappropriately”. Russian propaganda is trying to create for Biden the image of an elderly and insane man, unable to make decisions, who allegedly cannot be trusted. Earlier, Detector Media denied a number of fakes about Joe Biden, in particular, about the alleged fall from an airplane during a visit to Warsaw or about his statement, where they claimed that Putin could not be defeated. Also, analysts have refuted the manipulation of how Biden allegedly stated that “the doctors had to cut open his skull to make sure he had a brain”.

On April 6, a video began to be distributed in the Georgian segment of Facebook, which recorded the movement of the RS-24 Yars intercontinental ballistic missile system. According to the description, mobile nuclear installations appeared in the border town of Vyborg after Finland joined NATO. It's fake.

Myth Detector specialists drew attention to the case. The video went viral on Twitter, where several accounts were able to determine the location of the vehicle using geolocation. Comparing the location on the video with a Google map, it was determined that the video of the equipment was filmed in the city of Kolchugino, Volodymyr region, not far from Moscow, and not in the city of Vyborg near the border with Finland. The Myth Detector also turned to weapons specialist Gigi Inaishvili. According to him, the range of the RS-24 Yars missile system is up to 12,000 km, “the system is not intended for nearby countries, and the complexes shown in the video were probably preparing for the May 9 parade”.

The distribution of the video, which recorded the movement of equipment allegedly to the border with Finland, was for intimidation. Earlier, Dmytro Polianskyi, first deputy permanent representative of Russia to the UN, noted that “If NATO units appear in these territories [Sweden and Finland], these territories will become a target or a possible target for a strike”.  Detector Media has already investigated what anonymous telegram channels wrote about Finland's accession to NATO and how Putin accused NATO of “breaking” the promise not to expand to the East.

Such information is disseminated by the Russian media, referring to the words of Russia's permanent representative to the UN Vasyl Nebenzia. He stated it on March 10 during a meeting of the UN Security Council. They write that Western weapons supplied to Ukraine “have already begun to appear in the states of Europe and Africa, replenishing the arsenals of organized crime”. And in this way, “assault rifles, machine guns, grenade launchers, anti-tank guided missiles and Western-made man-portable missile systems fall into the hands of bandits and radical regimes”. It is not true.

The StopFake fact-checkers drew attention to the case. In 2022, an Interim special commission of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine was established in Ukraine to monitor the receipt and use of international logistical assistance during martial law. The government of Ukraine has pledged to ensure proper storage and accounting of the transferred defense equipment, said US Ambassador to the UN Robert Wood. He was supported by representatives of Great Britain, Albania, Japan, Poland, France.

Such fakes are necessary for Russia in order to discredit Ukraine and weaken international support. Detector Media has already investigated the emergence of disinformation in the Financial Times about “arms smuggling from Ukraine”.

Such information is disseminated by the Russian media, referring to the statement of Russia's permanent representative to the UN Vasyl Nebenzia. He made it on April 5 during the so-called “Arria Formula” meeting, an informal meeting during which UN member states can learn more information on international security issues. According to Nebenzia, the Ukrainian authorities “commit crimes against children”: they are kidnapped from parents who refuse to evacuate from the war zone. It's fake.

The fact checkers of the StopFake project drew attention to the case. Ukraine does not kidnap children. On April 4, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine supported the initiative of the Donetsk regional military administration on the mandatory evacuation of 126 children from 21 settlements in the region due to active hostilities. Children were evacuated from dangerous settlements in the Donetsk region in armored vehicles, accompanied only by their parents or guardians.

Also, 49 UN member states adopted a statement accusing Russia of “spreading disinformation about mass abductions and illegal forcible deportation of thousands of Ukrainian children”. UN member states note that Russia has been solely guilty of the deportation of Ukrainian children, and the International Criminal Court has a number of pieces of evidence that confirms this.

Russia needs such statements in order to legalize aggression against the Ukrainian people, present itself as a “peacemaker” and absolve itself of responsibility for these crimes. Detector Media has already investigated how Russia justifies deportation and other war crimes in Ukraine.

Such information appeared in social networks, in particular on telegram channels broadcasting pro-Russian rhetoric. The authors of the messages added to the publication a screenshot allegedly from the Ukrinform website, which stated that the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine plans to ban photography and video filming of cemeteries. The “news” that allegedly appeared on the Ukrinform website says that “according to lawmakers, public coverage of the state of Ukrainian cemeteries can provide valuable intelligence information to the Russian army, as well as create a negative information background in the country itself”. However, this is all fake.

The fact-checkers of the StopFake project drew attention to the case. Fact-checkers found out that such a bill has not been registered in the Verkhovna Rada. The Parliament website has already passed a law on the creation of a National war memorial cemetery, but it also does not say anything about a ban on photography and video filming. “The screenshot of the news from the Ukrainian news agency itself is a fake. There is no such news on the Ukrinform website”, StopFake writes.

Russian propaganda needs such messages to create the appearance that the situation in Ukraine is too bad: people are dying en masse, there is no place to bury them, and the authorities are allegedly trying to hide the scale of the tragedy.

Such information is distributed in the German-speaking segment of social networks, particularly on TikTok. Reports say that people from Ukraine in Germany seem to be able to get assistance very easily. To receive payments, they allegedly do not even need to pass the verification that people from other countries must pass. The videos that were being circulated also stated that the Ukrainians receive this aid without problems and spend it on vacations on the islands. It is not true.

Analysts of the Correctiv project drew attention to the case in the network. In fact, Ukrainians in Germany do not receive social assistance without any verification, according to a spokesman for the Federal Employment Service. However, like all people receiving social assistance in Germany, they can spend 21 days a year away from their place of residence and do not have to work within these days, so the claim that refugees travel on the islands is not logical.

Analysts note that such videos are added to a number of other false claims that have been circulated against Ukrainians in recent months in order to create a negative image for refugees from Ukraine. Russia needs such fakes in order to discredit Ukrainian refugees and change the attitude towards them in countries where there are now tens of thousands of Ukrainian refugees.

Such messages appeared on social networks at the end of March. The reports said that a recent report by one of the Polish TV channels allegedly showed a map according to which Ukraine should be divided between Russia, Poland, Romania and Hungary. The publications claimed that the video was relevant and the map shows that “the entire south and east of Ukraine will belong to Russia”, and the western part will “join” Poland, small parts will go to Romania and Hungary. However, this is fake. The Polish channel did not show such a map in 2023.

As the analysts of the Correctiv project found out, the video is not up-to-date, it shows a report from Polish television in 2014, in which a Russian politician offered Poland to divide Ukraine. The Polish government called the proposal “strange” and one that should not be taken seriously.

Analysts have researched that the logos of the Polish news channel TVP1 can be seen in an online video that is being circulated in the messages, but what is heard is not what the messages claim: the speaker first speaks in Polish about “joining our territory”, and then says: “ […] Hungary and Romania received a similar proposal. There is no information about which regions Russia still wants to consider as its own, but only the central region will remain within the boundaries of modern Ukraine”.

Using the image from the video and the name of the broadcaster, analysts did a reverse image search and came across an original Polish TV report. It is dated March 23, 2014, so it is not relevant, contrary to what they say in social networks.

Russian propaganda regularly spreads messages about the plans of Poland and other countries to annex part of Ukraine. In fact, such statements are always unsubstantiated, but Russia needs it to partially justify itself by illustrating the desire of other states to seize part of Ukraine.