A video of White House Press Sec. Karine Jean-Pierre was manipulated with fake audio to make it sound like she said Ukraine, U.S. fought side-by-side in WWII.
Iterations of the collage have been online since at least 2015 and appear to be screenshots of a video that shows pro-Russian forces taking control of the eastern Ukrainian city of Debaltseve. It's unrelated to Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
The photos are real, but they're outdated and do not appear to have been taken in Mariupol. The social media posts were miscaptioned.
Our ruling
A collage shared online claims to show Russian forces replacing the Ukrainian flag with the Soviet Flag in Mariupol in 2022.
Iterations of the collage have been online since at least 2015 and appear to feature screenshots of a video that shows pro-Russian forces taking control of the eastern Ukrainian city of Debaltseve.
It's unrelated to Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
We rate this False.
Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began on February 24, thousands of images showing Russian soldiers and vehicles have emerged online. Some of these images shocked viewers when they saw the flag of the Soviet Union waving on some Russian military equipment. For residents of Ukraine, a former part of the Soviet Union, the flag may represent "an expression of a desire to repress them", according to a post-Soviet politics specialist who spoke to the FRANCE 24 Observers team.
No legal agreement prohibits NATO from expanding eastward.
Russians have argued that comments made by U.S. and other Western leaders during the negotiations over the reunification of Germany constituted a promise that NATO would not extend beyond then-East Germany. Those allegations have sparked decades of debate amongst those involved in the events, and scholars studying them.
Even scholars who say they believe western powers did offer the Soviet Union assurances about NATO expansion say Owens' claim is misleading.
Our ruling
Owens said, "NATO (under direction from the United States) is violating previous agreements and expanding eastward."
There is an ongoing historical debate over comments that Western leaders, including Baker, made during post-Cold War negotiations, and whether what they said amounted to assurances that NATO would refrain from welcoming in countries closer to modern-day Russia.
But NATO as an organization made no such pledge, and the formal agreement signed at the end of those negotiations said nothing about the alliance not expanding eastward.
We rate this claim Mostly False.
Historians cite upwards of a dozen examples dating back to the 1500s in which Russia or the Soviet Union attacked another country without being militarily attacked first.
• Russia may offer various justifications for why it attacked another country in these instances, but each of these examples involved militarily unprovoked actions by Russia or the Soviet Union.
Our ruling
Peskov said, "Russia has never attacked anyone throughout its history."
Historians cite upwards of a dozen examples dating back to the 1500s in which Russia or the Soviet Union attacked another country without being militarily attacked first.
Russia may offer various justifications for why it attacked another country in these instances, but contrary to Peskov's statement, each of these examples did involve militarily unprovoked actions by Russia or the Soviet Union.
We rate the statement Pants on Fire.