The “information alibi” method consists of proactively accusing the other party of actions that will actually be committed by the accusers themselves. This technique is used to cover up or justify one's criminal actions by creating a preemptive message to confuse the audience and deflect responsibility. The Center for Countering Disinformation at the National Security and Defense Council spoke in more detail about its use.

Its experts showed with real examples how it works. Russian troops launched a missile attack on a railway station in Kramatorsk in April 2022, killing civilians. In anticipation of this attack, Russian telegram channels distributed warnings about the danger of evacuation by rail, blaming the Ukrainian Armed Forces for the concentration of militants at the station. This created the preconditions for accusing Ukraine of organizing the attack. A few weeks before Russia blew up Colony No. 120 in Olenivka, where Ukrainian prisoners were kept, a telegram spread information that Ukraine was allegedly preparing to destroy the colony. When Russia prepared and carried out mass civilian killings in Izium and Uman, propaganda disseminated information in advance about Ukrainian “provocations” in these cities. The Russians are also still distributing “information alibis”, the formation of which has not yet been completed, for example, about the staging of the mass death of locals in Kherson.

By anticipating possible charges, Russia is trying to confuse the international community and divert attention from its actions. By accusing Ukraine of future or already committed crimes, propagandists also try to undermine trust in the Ukrainian authorities and the Armed Forces of Ukraine both within the country and abroad. Creating alternative versions of events helps Russia spread doubt to an international audience, making it difficult to unequivocally condemn its actions and subsequently impose sanctions. Russian propaganda deliberately complicates the establishment of the truth, which is beneficial for the aggressor to continue his criminal actions without due responsibility.