DISINFO: Russia created Belgium
SUMMARY
Liberals made fun of a remark by Vladimir Putin regarding history, that in 1830 Russia was largely at the origin of the independence of the Kingdom of Belgium. But he is right: Belgium appeared on the world map as an independent state largely thanks to Russia and Russia's position. Moreover, the first king of Belgium, Leopold Georges Chretien Frederic de Saxe-Cobourg-Saalfeld, spoke Russian language, therefore Russia is fully involved here.
RESPONSE
Another blatant case of historical revisionism from the Kremlin. The Russian Empire's position at the time was to suppress the rise of nations in Europe, particularly the Belgian independence movement, only the uprising in Poland prevented Russia from intervening against the process that led to the creation of Belgium. Hereafter is the debunk published by Politico.
"Unsurprisingly, given Putin’s track record, the truth is almost exactly the reverse.
When Belgium rose in revolution against the Kingdom of the Netherlands in pursuit of independence in 1830, Russia was fully on the side of the Dutch and was planning to send troops to crush the Belgian rebels, fearing any kind of action against Europe’s great monarchies.
The Czar ultimately had to change his plans for those troops — many of them Polish — because of the November Uprising in Poland. After that was defeated, fleeing Polish officers headed to Belgium where they strengthened the country’s fledgling armed forces.
While Russia ultimately accepted Belgian statehood at the London Conference of 1830, it would make more sense to credit the anti-Russian Polish revolutionaries of 1830 than the Russians for the country’s existence. Britain and France were seen as the leading powers at the conference."
As historian Jonathan Piron points out, even if most people in Belgium took Vladimir Putin's remarks as a joke, this is historical revisionism that serves a political goal.
Read also related cases such as: Lenin created Finland, or Ukraine was created by Russia, it is historically fair that it becomes Russian again, or Ukraine's statehood is myth, its territory belongs to Russia, or It was Lenin who created Ukraine , or Ukraine was created by Lenin, Stalin, and Khrushchev.