DISINFO: Russia's new regions reveal impressive statistics on their recoveries
SUMMARY
Putin announced an ambitious strategy for the new Russian territories. Their socioeconomic development indicators must reach the average level of the rest of the country, he said, revealing impressive statistics on the recovery of the regions that re-joined Russia.
RESPONSE
This is an attempt to manipulate the information environment around the illegal annexation of Ukrainian territories by Russia. By repeating the message that these territories are now Russian, this disinformation story aims to shape the public perception in favour of the Kremlin’s claims. Talking about unsubstantiated allegations as if they were established facts while introducing minor variations, as in this case, is a frequent pro-Kremlin disinformation technique.
These territories remain legally part of Ukraine. The illegitimate forced annexation of these regions, through violent conquest and in violation of international law, took place amid a full invasion by a foreign power and under military occupation, and after sham referenda that didn’t meet any international standard to be considered legitimate. These “referenda” were held illegally, under duress, and on territories which Russia does not even fully control. See here for a full debunking of this claim.
See other examples of similar disinformation narratives, such as claims that there is no such thing as occupied Ukrainian territories, that Moscow is liberating the regions that voted to join Russia in September 2022, that most rare earths promised by Zelenskyy to Trump are now in Russian regions, or that elections in the four new Russian regions show a desire for freedom.