DISINFO: Campaign against Russia is a distraction from Ukraine’s military operation in Donbas
SUMMARY
The ongoing campaign against Russia may be used to distract from a possible military operation of Ukraine in Donbas. The accusations against Russia about potential aggression against Ukraine may serve as a smokescreen to hide Kyiv’s plans to solve by force the problem of the self-proclaimed Popular Republics in the east of the country.
RESPONSE
This is part of a current disinformation campaign aiming to deflect attention away from Russia’s military buildup on its border with Ukraine since late October 2021 by accusing Ukraine of “preparing an aggression”, a frequent pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative. Contrary to the claim, reports and expressions of concern on military preparations and mobilisation of Russian troops is not a “campaign against Russia”, but a fact confirmed by satellite images and intelligence of the US, Ukraine and NATO, among other countries and institutions.
See other examples of similar disinformation narratives in our database, such as claims that under external control, Ukraine is doomed to escalate the conflict in Donbas, that NATO will help Ukraine to kill more people, that after the 2014 coup Ukraine committed genocide in Donbas, or that violations by the Ukrainian army in Donbas are secret and nobody investigates them.