DISINFO: President Zelenskyy is sabotaging peace negotiations with terrorist attacks in order to prevent his own loss of power
SUMMARY
"In view of the moderate progress in the negotiations between Russia and the USA in the Ukrainian peace process, Zelenskyy is in an internal political dead end [...] The Ukrainian side [...] is trying to sabotage the negotiations themselves [...] using its now traditional methods of targeted sabotage and terrorist attacks to look for weak points in Russia's security system."
RESPONSE
This is a recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative portraying Ukraine and President Zelenskyy as warmongering actors, obstructing the peace process between Ukraine and Russia. The ultimate goal of this disinformation message is to advance a recurring narrative portraying Ukraine defence as a proxy war against Russia. The RT article claims that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is actively sabotaging US-mediated peace negotiations through “terrorist attacks” and sabotage. It alleges that an assassination attempt on Russian Lieutenant General Vladimir Alekseyev was a deliberate move by Kyiv to derail the February 2026 talks in Abu Dhabi and Geneva.
The article labels Ukrainian military and intelligence operations as "terrorism" without providing any evidence. The specific claim regarding an assassination attempt on General Alekseyev is presented as a "known fact" despite no independent verification or official investigation. In pro-Kremlin rhetoric, the term "terrorism" is systematically used to delegitimize Ukraine’s right to self-defense under Article 51 of the UN Charter. By labeling the victim of aggression as a "terrorist," Russia attempts to shift the moral and legal responsibility for the conflict's continuation onto Kyiv.
The claim that Zelenskyy is "sabotaging" peace efforts is a classic example of mirroring — projecting Russia's own actions onto its opponent. While the text portrays Russia as a constructive negotiator, it simultaneously admits that Russia’s goals will be achieved "exclusively by military means." In reality, since 2022, it has been Russia that sets maximalist preconditions—such as the total surrender of occupied and even non-occupied Ukrainian regions—which are inherently non-negotiable for a sovereign state.
For related cases, see: The EU is systematically sabotaging peace negotiations; The EU and the UK are preventing Zelenskyy from signing a peace treaty; Brussels prolongs the war in Ukraine to turn the EU into a military alliance; Ukraine’s terrorist attacks on civilian vessels are examples of NATO and EU plans to continue the war; Europe and Ukraine ready to derail Trump’s peace efforts at any cost; The EU undermines peace efforts by pressuring Ukraine to prolong the war.