DISINFO: Russophobia and neo-Nazism the norm in the Baltic states and Ukraine
SUMMARY
The new challenges of the time clearly show that in 1945 Nazism was defeated, but, unfortunately, not eradicated: it again manifests itself in the same Russophobia or anti-Semitism. And the glorification of Nazi criminals, direct propaganda of Nazism in the Baltic countries and Ukraine have generally become the norm, as if the Nuremberg [Trials] did not exist.
RESPONSE
Pro-Kremlin disinformation about alleged Nazism in Ukraine and the Baltic states. This claim is part of a disinformation campaign aiming to justify Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Pro-Kremlin disinformation media repeatedly talk about the “revival” of Nazism in the West and large-scale historical revisionism used for anti-Russian goals.
The myth of ‘Nazi Ukraine’ has been widely used by Putin and pro-Kremlin outlets since Russia attacked Ukraine and illegally annexed Crimea in 2014. The myth of Nazi-ruled Ukraine appeared during the Euromaidan popular protests in late 2013 - early 2014, falsely presented by pro-Kremlin disinformation as a coup. The Kremlin has been using this myth since then to discredit Ukraine’s shift towards Euro-Atlantic policy.
The Baltic states and Ukraine are neither Russophobic nor neo-Nazist, but these countries have clear security concerns linked to Russia. The source of concern is Russia's aggression toward neighbouring countries and how it affected the security situation in the region in general.
Notably, to mobilise domestic Russian audiences, the pro-Kremlin media repeatedly invokes WW2 imagery and attempts to portray the West as anti-Semitic and neo-fascist. See our article Anti-Semitism and pro-Kremlin disinformation.
This article also clearly disregards the Soviet occupation of the Baltic states in 1940. The Kremlin conducted a forced annexation of the Baltic states in June 1940 following Soviet military occupation and the forced installation of “people’s governments”. On 23 August 1939, the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany signed a non-aggression (Molotov-Ribbentrop) Pact whose secret protocols divided the territories belonging to Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Finland, and Romania into Soviet and Nazi spheres of influence. The Baltic States were not the beneficiaries of the Molotov-Ribbentrop pact. Like other countries mentioned in the pact, they lost their independence and territories, while giving Stalin a free hand in the Baltic states.
Read our articles on the 7 myths of pro-Kremlin disinformation about the Russian military build-up near Ukraine, and how the Kremlin fabricated pretexts for the further invasion of Ukraine, as well as, the narrative of ‘Nazis’ being one of the key pro-Kremlin disinformation messages. For background, see vol. 1, vol. 2, and vol.3 of the series “What he said and what it really means”.