Another fake in the grand narrative of Russian disinformation about what is happening with foreign weapons in Ukraine. Russian propaganda at first pretends that it has been "completely destroyed," and many times. Then - that it is sold to Al-Qaeda militants. Now - a new fake about the alleged purchase of Western weapons by "Syrian militants."

All this is to persuade Western countries to reduce their support for Ukraine with weapons or prove that Ukraine does not control the weapons supplied by partners.

There is no evidence of these alleged sales. But there is a lot of evidence of the Ukrainian military's successful use of Western weapons.

Russian propagandist Dmitry Kiselyov in the program "News of the Week," continued to spread the fake that Ukrainian manufacturers allegedly modified Turkish Bayraktar drones with "spray containers" with which they allegedly intended to spray viruses. This fake appeared in late March but has now been extended. Kiselyov claims that this drone modification was developed at the Motor-Sich plant, which the Russians "destroyed with high-precision missiles" last week. To prove the existence of such "finished" bayraktars in the story, Russian propagandists showed an unknown who made a small quadcopter with a container, writes Insider.

The propagandists are fabricating fakes in advance. When the Russians fired four rockets at Zaporizhzhia on May 25 (Ukrainian air defenses destroyed one), they called the shelling "the destruction of the Motor-Sich plant." The Ukrainian military leadership did not report any hits at the plant's shops. But it is well known that the missiles hit the mall and other civilian objects. One person was killed, and three others were injured

The Russian state news agency TASS, quoting Andriy Morochko, a militant from the Luhansk People's Republic, said that a French citizen who died in Sievierodonetsk was a mercenary an intermediary in arms supplies to Ukraine. It is a fake.

In fact, Frederick Leclerc-Imhoff is a BFMTV journalist who was killed by the Russians on May 30, 2022, during the shelling of an evacuation column of civilians from the city of Sievierodonetsk. He was 32 years old. The deceased's mother reacted to the spread of the fake, saying that no one would be able to tarnish the memory of her son, and those involved in the war crime, which Russian propaganda is trying to hide, should be punished. "I'm sick of your press release," said Leclerc-Imhoff's mother, who is posted on the BFMTV website. The French Foreign Minister also demands an investigation into the journalist's death.

Russian propagandist Dmitry Kiselyov in the program "News of the Week," continued to spread the fake that Ukrainian manufacturers allegedly modified Turkish Bayraktar drones with "spray containers" with which they allegedly intended to spray viruses. This fake appeared in late March but has now been extended. Kiselyov claims that this drone modification was developed at the Motor-Sich plant, which the Russians "destroyed with high-precision missiles" last week. To prove the existence of such "finished" bayraktars in the story, Russian propagandists showed an unknown who made a small quadcopter with a container, writes Insider.

The propagandists are fabricating fakes in advance. When the Russians fired four rockets at Zaporizhzhia on May 25 (Ukrainian air defenses destroyed one), they called the shelling "the destruction of the Motor-Sich plant." The Ukrainian military leadership did not report any hits at the plant's shops. But it is well known that the missiles hit the mall and other civilian objects. One person was killed, and three others were injured.

The Russian media are spreading another fake about Azov fighters. They claim that they found money from the Azov Regiment fighters who left Azovstal with them - euros, dollars, and hryvnias, as well as a lot of gold. The program "Vesti" even shot a story called "Gold of Azov," where he spread this fake, referring to a single statement by a "representative of the DNR." He did not provide any evidence of gold or money.

But at the same time, the plot has the usual logical gaps for propaganda. For example, the journalist says that the Azov military allegedly tried to hide among other military and civilians who were at the plant and also left its territory and were taken, prisoner. But, according to militants, the so-called "DPR," all Azov residents have a "distinctive feature: each has a large amount of money, and dollars, euros, hryvnias, and a lot of gold with tags." Why people who tried to "hide" among others had this "distinctive feature" all at once, the audience did not explain.

It is another attempt to discredit the Azov fighters and made according to "understandable" patterns for viewers of the channel. If the Russian military themselves are looters and constantly steal things in Ukrainian apartments or rob stores, they must believe that the Ukrainian army is doing the same.

Russian telegram channels spread a fake that the Church of the Ascension in Lukyanivka, Kyiv region, was destroyed by the Ukrainian military after the retreat of Russian troops. This fake Russian propaganda was built on one photo of the Ukrainian army with blue armbands, "posing against the background of a completely undamaged church." It was spread by one of the pro-Kremlin telegram channels, from which the Russian Defense Ministry often reposts information.

In fact, the Russians destroyed the church after the Armed Forces liberated Lukyanivka. According to VoxUkraine, the first reports of the liberation of Lukyanivka from Russian troops appeared on March 24, 2022. "We found photos of the Ukrainian military on a tank near an undamaged church using a Google Images reverse lookup. It is a screenshot of a video published by a Ukrainian fighter on March 25 on his TikTok account. On March 26, in comments, the video's author noted that the church had already been destroyed, " the fact-checkers said, adding that other fighters and the Armed Forces' Strategic Communications Department also wrote about the church's destruction. In particular, the Armed Forces reported that the Russians destroyed the church on March 25 with four shots from a tank. The Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate), to which the church belonged, also claims that a Russian tank destroyed the building on March 25. According to the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine, as of May 27, 133 churches were completely destroyed or damaged due to Russian aggression.

The network spreads fakes about alleged financial assistance from the Ukrainian Red Cross, saying that the organization will pay 3,000 hryvnias to refugees, displaced persons, the military, children under 18, and people who have lost their jobs. It is offered to go to the telegram bot. The Red Cross of Ukraine denied this information and called not to transfer personal data and bank card numbers to scammers. "Be careful, check the information on official sources of the Red Cross of Ukraine, for example, on the website redcross.org.ua," the organization said. "If you find fake information, let us know by sending a link to the fake source and a letter to sos@redcross.org.ua."

Scammers often manipulate Ukrainians and launch schemes with alleged financial aid from the state, banks, other organizations, or countries. If you have become a victim of a fraudulent scheme and provided scammers with your social network login or bank card details, you should immediately change your login passwords, change your bank card's CVV code, or reissue your card. We remind you that you can not enter your personal data and payment card details on unfamiliar and suspicious websites and advises you to set up control over the movement of funds (SMS notifications, transaction limits, etc.). Banks never ask users for a payment card PIN, CVV code, payment confirmation codes, and passwords for Internet banking. Similarly, no institution needs your passwords to log in to the social network to process your data. Passwords are requested only by scammers to gain access to your account. We warn that fraudsters often create clones of social networking sites, banks, and other institutions. To avoid problems - do not go to these sites with a link; search for official sites through a search engine, and pay attention to their addresses - one extra letter or misspelling may indicate that this site is fake.

An English-language fake is spreading on Facebook - President Volodymyr Zelensky allegedly bought a residence in Florida for $ 35 million, which the United States has allocated to help Ukraine in the war with Russia. Check Your Fact denied this information, noting that there was no evidence that Zelensky had bought the property and that the house was still up for sale. "A reverse image search shows that the house presented in the publication is up for sale at Sotheby's International Realty for $ 11.5 million. There are no signs that he has been sold, " the fact-checkers said, recalling that Zelensky had rejected a US proposal to evacuate the capital Kyiv after a full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine.

This fake is aimed at American users because it contains manipulation and lies about buying property: they say that the Ukrainian president paid for the villa from "their taxes." It is not the first time Russian propaganda has tried to discredit Zelensky in the eyes of the foreign community. These are attempts to undermine the trust in the Ukrainian government among ordinary citizens of other countries, including the United States, further influence the support of Ukraine by international partners. Earlier, Zelensky gained popularity among English-language Twitter, Ticket, and Reddit users. Read more about how the world discovered Zelensky in MediaSapiens.

This thesis is spread on social networks together with the picture of the LGBTQ IA+ flag - a community to which the colors of the Ukrainian flag - blue and yellow stripes - have been added. Some users also allegedly spread a statement by Oleksiy Arestovych, an adviser to the head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, in which he allegedly said that Detector.

In fact, no official sources have published this quote from Arestovich, and the flag of the LGBTQIA+ community does not contain the colors of the state flag of Ukraine. According to Reuters, the portal Know Your Meme, which documents memes and Internet culture, wrote about the changed color of the flag. They clarified that the photo initially had an ironic meaning, but later various users began to distribute it without context as factual information.

The American online magazine LGBTQ Nation noted that propaganda against the LGBTQ IA+ community is "an important part of Russia's military efforts." "The Putin regime's focus on humiliating the LGBT community inside Russia is being used as part of its military action against the Ukrainian population," the newspaper said.

This fake provoked a wave of ridicule and criticism of Ukraine by foreign audiences on social networks. In particular, they mentioned attacks during prides in various Ukrainian cities. So, it is obvious that this fake was spread to stop the support of Ukraine among foreigners.

The video of a freight train carrying dozens of tanks and military equipment across a railway bridge is being spread on social media. The posts claim that the tanks are allegedly moving to the Russian border in the direction of eastern Finland, noting that the country is allegedly preparing to go to war with Russia, reports Euronews.

The Finnish Defense Forces have already denied this information and said that these allegations are "false" and that the equipment, on the contrary, is moving away from Russia's border. In fact, this equipment was transported to the annual two-week military exercises in western Finland. Euronews writes that it compared the video with images on Google and found that the video was shot in the city of Tampere: the footage shows that the train is moving west, towards the villages of Niinisalo and Sakyla.

It is spread on social networks and media that the OSCE allegedly provided the Azov Regiment with communications and intelligence in Mariupol. According to StopFake, these reports refer to pro-Russian militants from the occupied parts of the Donetsk region, who are distributing photos and saying that they allegedly found a satellite phone with a sticker of the organization on Azovstal.

The OSCE denied allegations of communications and intelligence to the Ukrainian military at Azovstal, saying it had never provided any additional information other than open official reports. The organization says that since the start of hostilities on February 24, 2022, the Mission has recorded increasingly hostile public rhetoric against the OSCE SMMU, especially in areas not controlled by the Ukrainian government. "False, unsubstantiated, and increasingly outrageous allegations have been made about the SMMU, which the OSCE has refuted. As for Mariupol, the SMMU has not controlled its office in Mariupol since March 15 due to ongoing fighting, ” a spokesman told StopFake. The fact-checkers noted that there was no evidence that the phone with the OSCE sticker was found on Azovstal and that the Ukrainian military used it. They pointed out that the phone " with a high probability could be found in the building of the former OSCE office in Mariupol."

Russian propaganda media spread reports of this content. They claim that the Bulgarian authorities are allegedly removing Ukrainian refugees "on the street" from those hotels in resort areas. According to StopFake, some users of the network claim that Bulgaria has allegedly announced the beginning of the procedure of eviction of refugees from Ukraine "because of their bad behavior and disrespect for the local population." However, this is not true. According to fact-checkers, the Bulgarian state program, which covers free accommodation and meals for Ukrainian refugees in hotels, expires on May 31. After that, refugees in need of asylum will be relocated to state, municipal, or departmental bases or to private hotels, which under the new conditions, participate in the New State Humanitarian Program to accommodate displaced persons from Ukraine. 

Reports say that Ukraine allegedly deliberately worsened the regions' economies currently temporarily occupied, while Russia "is engaged in their development." In particular, the propagandists claim Kyiv "worsened the situation of farmers" in the Kherson region. The European Union is also to blame for this, as the purchase of large volumes of agricultural products from EU countries has allegedly led to a drop in demand for Ukrainian goods and a reduction in crops.

According to StopFake, the Russian media attribute the statement about the "oppression" of Kherson farmers by Kyiv to Vladyslav Shybaylov, the so-called head of the agricultural department of the Henichesk district of the region. "After all, he is a protege of the occupying power, a local supporter of the pro-Russian party "Opposition Platform - For Life, " StopFake writes. In fact, according to fact-checkers, before the arrival of the occupiers in the Kherson region, agricultural production increased, farmers could receive subsidies, and exports of goods went to different countries. Instead, due to the ban of the Russian occupiers from taking anything out of the region, farmers of the occupied Kherson region are forced to sell their products at a minimum price because they are allowed to trade only with the occupied Crimea. In addition, the Russian occupiers are massively exporting Ukrainian grain from the region, and with the new harvest, the threat and theft are growing. Read more.

Posts with this statement are distributed on Facebook and other social networks in Russian. They claim that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz recently said that the genocide of Russians in Donbas was ridiculous. Against the background of a special military operation in Ukraine, Germans now have a moral right to forget what their ancestors did during World War II. The video adds excerpts from a Russian-language interview with Scholz, in which he says NATO is not an aggressive organization, noting that Putin's allegations of genocide in the Donbas are ridiculous. In fact, according to Myth Detector checkers, the widespread claim that Olaf Scholz says that in light of the current Russian aggression, Germans have the right to forget the crimes of their ancestors during World War II is untrue. An excerpt from Scholz's video shared on social media was taken from the Munich Security Conference, where he spoke about security issues, including Russian aggression. Scholz did call Putin's arguments about the genocide in Donbas ridiculous, but he never said anything about forgetting the crimes of Nazism.

The Kremlin's propaganda media spread this information. Reports say that the authorities of the Zaporizhzhia region allegedly announced preparations for the "surrender" of the city of Zaporizhzhia to the Russian army. According to the fact-checkers from StopFake, the Russian media call the proof of the quick surrender of Zaporizhzhia "almost a round-the-clock discussion of the evacuation" in the city. "On behalf of the Zaporizhzhia authorities, the Russian media broadcast a statement by Volodymyr Rohov, a collaborator and mouthpiece of Russian propaganda who has nothing to do with Ukrainian authorities. In 2014, Rohov fled to Russia and appeared in the Zaporizhzhia region only in 2022 after a large-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine. On March 29, 2022, the National Police opened a criminal investigation into Rohov's collaborative activities.

That is why Rohov's statements have no factual basis and cannot be considered credible. StopFake has already denied the disinformation of the collaborator that the administration of the Zaporizhzhia region "excluded its return to the control of Kyiv.”

Actually, although part of the Zaporizhzhia region is indeed temporarily occupied by Russian troops, the Armed Forces of Ukraine are protecting the region from invaders, and they are not going to "surrender Zaporizhzhia" and continue active measures to strengthen the regional defense's front, where the enemy continues to accumulate additional forces and resources. As Detector Media has already written, to fix in the minds of Russians who use state propaganda that Russia is "forever" present in the occupied territories of Ukraine, the Kremlin media spread the narrative of "Kherson power" or "Zaporizhzhia power." Either they report that the "Kherson Oblast authorities" are asking Putin to deploy a Russian military base in the Kherson region or that the "Zaporizhzhia Region authorities" are announcing Kyiv's plans to "surrender Zaporizhzhia." However, there are no "authorities of Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions." Such reports refer only to collaborators appointed by the Russian occupiers.

According to the Center for Countering Disinformation, such a message is spread by Russian propagandists. The reports say that the information comes from a "reliable source from Bankova" and add that the reason for the shutdown is the "truth" that people in the occupation began to tell their relatives and friends about "good Russian soldiers" who do not kill and rob but help people.

"Disconnecting Ukrainians from mobile operators and Internet providers is part of the occupation's efforts to infiltrate propaganda into the Ukrainian media space. Disconnections are carried out only by Russians. Ukraine is making every effort to ensure that Ukrainian radio and television broadcasting operate in every city, even the occupied ones, ” the Center said. In particular, Ukrainian Radio remains almost the only source of information in those territories of Ukraine that the Russians currently occupy.

According to Andriy Taranov, a public broadcaster's board member, we still have a live broadcast when the mobile network and the Internet are blocked. We used to think that radio in the middle waves was obsolete, and nobody listened to it, but unexpectedly it became part of national security. "We are almost the only ones who informed people in Mariupol when humanitarian corridors were opened in Ukraine," he said.

Russian authorities have called "American fake" evidence provided by Western partners of Russia's theft of Ukrainian grain. The Russian media published a "rebuttal" that the "collective West is deliberately spreading fakes" about Russian troops' theft of Ukrainian food. According to StopFake, many satellite images confirm Russia's theft of Ukrainian grain. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations also stated evidence of Russian theft of Ukrainian food.

The Center for Countering Disinformation at the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine refutes the most common fakes about salt.

Salt stocks are there, and they will be on sale! Due to the shelling of the occupiers and the danger to workers' lives, the state enterprise Artemsil, located in Soledar, Donetsk region, stopped salt production in April. But in large chain supermarkets, there is a salt stock of several thousand tons.

Salt has not risen in price due to high demand, and the "opportunity to earn" in retail stores and markets artificially inflates the price of salt. But it is the massive purchase of salt in large quantities leads to shortages and further price increases!

Sausage and smoked producers use imported specially prepared salt. In addition to their salt stocks in warehouses, large producers have concluded additional agreements on salt supply from abroad.

The source of this "news" was the site "Strana.ua," which repeatedly spreads fakes and narratives of Russian propaganda. She was picked up by several Russian and Ukrainian media. The video from the news shows parts of the plane being pulled out of the hangar. Allegations about the disposal of "Mriya" were refuted by the state enterprise "Antonov" and called unreliable.

"We emphasize that Antonov closely cooperates with law enforcement and investigative bodies of Ukraine to gather evidence of crimes committed by the Russian occupiers.

The video, which served as the basis for disseminating this inaccurate information, was filmed in a "pirated" way and distributed without the consent of Antonov and the relevant government agencies, " the statement said.

The world's largest An-225 aircraft, the “Mriya,” was destroyed by Russian troops in the first days of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 27. The airport in Gostomel, where the plane was based, was one of the first to be hit by the Russians. Aviation experts believe that the aircraft was explicitly destroyed to prevent its recovery.

The National Police of Ukraine conducts a series of examinations on the consequences of destroying the “Mriya.” The 360war.in.ua volunteer project, which shows the effects of the war in Ukraine, has created a virtual tour of the wrecked plane and airport in Gostomel.

Earlier, President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that Ukraine should build a new “Mriya” plane and dedicate it to the memory of the pilots killed in the war.

It is alleged that the Russian Ministry of Defense received such information from captured Ukrainian soldiers. The report used a standard set of Russian propaganda: "Neo-Nazi" plan to fire on Russia's border area from a residential area of ​​the city, provoke a retaliatory strike, and then blow up containers with chemically hazardous substances. Journalists of foreign news agencies are in Sumy for photo and video shooting. And, of course, the goal is to accuse the Russian military of allegedly using chemical weapons and striking civilians who are not being evacuated but left in the city for "maximum resonance."

Such nonsensical Russians are throwing into the media to either intimidate people in the region where they announce the provocation or plan to commit a war crime and absolve themselves of responsibility.

The Security Service of Ukraine reminds us that the Russian military regularly shells peaceful Ukrainian cities, kills civilians, uses them as a "living shield," rapes women in the occupied territories, takes children to "filtration camps," and tortures men.

Chechen fighters are clearing the city.

It was announced on the night of May 29 by the Kremlin-controlled head of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov. In fact, he gives out the desire for reality.

On the morning of May 29, the head of the Luhansk Regional Military Administration, Serhiy Haidai, emphasized that the enemy had no success in Sievierodonetsk. He confirmed that the Russians managed to gain a foothold in the Hotel “Myr” in the city's suburb. "They stay there and lose; they can't move further. Our people are constantly kicking them out of the hotel, " Haidai said. And those Kadyrovites who shoot videos for social networks, as if they were with their flag in the Russian-controlled Sievierodonetsk, Haidai advised to go to the city center and shoot the video there. "I hope this will be your last video," said the head of the Luhansk Regional Military Administration.

Haidai said that Ukrainian defenders drove the Russians out of Toshkivka and secured it. "There are reinforcements. In the direction of Popasna near Komyshuvakha, the enemy was pushed back by 2 kilometers, and the Lysychansk-Bakhmut route is now less shot. Humanitarian cargoes are moving.

The Russian Ministry of Defense stated that the city of Lyman in the Kramatorsk district of the Donetsk region was completely "liberated from Ukrainian nationalists." The Russian media widely spread this “news.” Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Malyar said on the national telethon that the situation in Lyman is complicated, but it is too early to talk about the occupation. "It's a war. The enemy is strong,, and the Armed Forces are also strong. That's why the fighting is fierce, " the official emphasized. She explained that until a particular stage of the war is over, it is incorrect to discuss any final results and draw conclusions. During the battles, a specific part of the settlement may be temporarily under the control of one side. Later, this situation may change dramatically.

Hanna Malyar said that Lyman is a large railway junction, so some believe that capturing this citywouldl significantly strengthen the enemy positions in the Donbas. However, if we consider all the factors, including the balance of power and the means of delivery of provisions, it is not appropriate to say so. After all, the logistics and average morale of the army must be established. Therefore, according to Malyar, one city Lyman will not significantly affect the ability of the enemy army.

In turn, the head of the Donetsk regional military administration Pavlo Kyrylenko noted on May 27 that Lyman is mainly under the control of the Russian military.

At the same time, Ukrainian defenders managed to take and strengthen new positions.

We will also note that the occupiers have been trying to capture the estuary for a long time. On May 24, Kyrylenko said that they were entering the city and were being beaten out by the Armed Forces. The enemy drove to the subburn and tried to break through to the center of the city.

 The media reports about the tacit agreement of NATO countries not to give Ukraine certain heavy weapons are fake, or a member of the Czech Alliance does not know anything about it. It was stated at a press conference with Slovak Defense Minister Jaroslav Naď by his Czech counterpart Jana Chernohova, idnes.cz reports. The other day, the German news agency dpa, citing Bundestag member Wolfgang Hellmich, wrote that NATO had allegedly agreed in private not to provide the Armed Forces with certain types of heavy equipment, such as infantry fighting vehicles or Western-made tanks. "There is no such agreement. Well, at least I didn't go down without explaining myself first. And if this idea came to someone's mind, we would not support it, "Chernohova said when asked by a journalist. In Prague, British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss and her Czech counterpart Jan Lipavsky also denied similar reports. "It simply came to our notice then. Ukraine's support comes from individual states, and NATO does not have such a large program [of support]. The Czech Republic is proud to support Ukraine militarily, help Ukraine resist Russian aggression, and participate in all relevant projects, as our capabilities allow or necessary, " Lipavsky said. Truss assured that NATO countries would continue to supply heavy weapons to Ukraine. She stressed that now it is important to create a recovery plan for Ukraine.    

The Ministry of Defense of Russia once again boasted of a contrived "success," allegedly by Russian air defense means over the settlement of Bilyary in the Odesa region shot down one MiG-29 aircraft of the Air Force of Ukraine. It is a lie. On May 28, YuzhneMayor Volodymyr Novatsky denied information about a downed Ukrainian plane over the town of Novi Biliary in the Odesa region.

Russian propaganda, including Vladimir Solovyov's telegram channel, spreads the fake that 80% of Kherson residents want a Russian passport. Firstly, this figure is taken from the ceiling: there is no independent sociology in the region, and no one has conducted any polls. Secondly, this figure was invented by collaborator Kirill Stremousov - he simply told the Russian media that he "thinks so." That was enough for the Russian media to spread the news with such headlines.