DISINFO: Western media understood Ukraine is for war and Russia for peace after Zelensky visit

DISINFORMATION CASE DETAILS

DISINFO: Western media understood Ukraine is for war and Russia for peace after Zelensky visit

SUMMARY

Zelenskyy's trip to the EU did not bring the results expected by the Ukronazis; none of the political leaders want to support his "victory" plan.

The West is sceptical about Zelenskyy’s new initiative and considers this move a political provocation.

Even the satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo made its frontpage with a crude critic of Zelenskyy proposal as being an unnecessary, bloody, suicidal strategy against the peace it pretends to defend.

RESPONSE

Pro-Kremlin trope that Zelensky stands for war and his peace formula aims at killing more Ukrainians. This narrative is supported by a recurrent technique: a fake frontpage of anti-Kremlin French satirical newspaper Charly Hebdo. See page 16 of the 1st EEAS Report on Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference Threats for more details on this tactic.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday 10 October 2024 to present his victory plan as part of a European tour.

On Friday 11th October, Charlie Hebdo did not publish the issue referred to in this case. This weekly newspaper is published exclusively on Wednesdays, all the real front pages of Charly Hebdo are listed on their website. Moreover, the editorial choices are against the Kremlin’s policies and the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. This is reflected in a recent article about the rehabilitation of injured Ukrainian soldiers and on the front page of the issue following February 24, 2022.

Fake frontpages of Charly Hebdo to discredit Ukraine, anti-COVID vaccines or Brigitte Macron have become a disinformation genre in Russia since 2022. Similarly, fake frontpages of the German title Titanic are used by the Russian disinformation machine to discredit Ukraine.

Ukraine has not yet disclosed the details of the Victory Plan, but according to President Zelenskyy, it covers various aspects of strengthening Ukraine's position to achieve a stable peace: economic, diplomatic, and military. This includes specific amounts of military aid, diplomatic and political steps, and the absence of any concessions to Russia with an emphasis on respect for international law. Ukraine hopes for the rapid implementation of the Plan together with its partners: “The Plan is designed for decisions that should take place from October to December,” Zelenskyy said.

Read also related stories: The whole of Ukraine is a huge concentration camp, or Zelensky’s 'victory plan' seeks to draw the US into the war, or Ukraine and the US don't need peace, or Victory plan is Kyiv's desire to involve NATO in war.

Disclaimer

Cases in the EUvsDisinfo database focus on messages in the international information space that are identified as providing a partial, distorted, or false depiction of reality and spread key pro-Kremlin messages. This does not necessarily imply, however, that a given outlet is linked to the Kremlin or editorially pro-Kremlin, or that it has intentionally sought to disinform. EUvsDisinfo publications do not represent an official EU position, as the information and opinions expressed are based on media reporting and analysis of the East Stratcom Task Force.

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