Category USA

Biden didn’t threaten to kill a former Ukrainian president

A phone call recording from 2016 between then-Vice President Joe Biden and then-Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko was leaked in 2020, but as it recirculates in 2022, it's wrongly being used to claim Biden threatened to kill the former head of state.

Biden, among other presidents, has used the term "physical security" regularly. In August, for example, Biden talked in a speech to the Democratic National Committee about the United States' need to plan its direction wisely to ensure "economic, political and physical security." As in the leaked phone call, Biden, speaking June 30 at a press conference in Madrid after a NATO summit, tied funding from the U.S. to aid Ukraine's fight against Russia's invasion to the country's physical security.

"But for it to end, they have to be in a position where … the Ukrainians have all that they can reasonably expect, we can reasonably expect to get to them, in order to … provide for their physical security and their defenses," he said.

We rate claims Biden threatened to assassinate a former Ukrainian president Pants on Fire!

Read MoreBiden didn’t threaten to kill a former Ukrainian president

No, U.S. Army forces aren’t in Ukraine

U.S. Army members aren't in Ukraine, according to the Department of Defense.

The Pentagon relocated National Guard members in February who were training Ukrainian military members in February.

There were 160 Florida National Guard troops training Ukraine's military when Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin temporarily relocated them to Europe in February. And 3,000 more American troops from the 82nd Airborne were also deployed to Europe from Fort Bragg, North Carolina.

The National Guard has continued to support Ukrainian soldiers remotely, according to the Army. For example, a June article on the Army's website shares how a Ukrainian soldier called a member of the Washington Army National Guard for help with a failed anti-tank missile.

But we rate claims that U.S. Army forces are stationed in Ukraine False.

Read MoreNo, U.S. Army forces aren’t in Ukraine

Fake: Kyiv Tests Dangerous Drugs on Own Citizens

Russian media are interpreting routine clinical trials of high blood pressure and rheumatoid arthritis drugs as an evil experiment on Ukrainian citizens. In these phase II drug effectiveness clinical studies, the trial participants were taking an already well-studied, potentially effective drug to treat their ailments. The clinical trials that Russian media are raising an alarm about are mentioned in published documents and are not a secret - they have passed all stages of verification and were carried out under the supervision of the Ukrainian Health Ministry's State Expert Center. Information about the drugs and the trials can be found on the Ministry of Health State Expert Center website Information on clinical trials in Ukraine.

Read MoreFake: Kyiv Tests Dangerous Drugs on Own Citizens

Manipulation: Pentagon Says Ukraine Should “No Longer Expect” HIMARS and Missiles

US Defense Department spokesman Colin Kahl did not state that Ukraine would no longer receive HIMARS. Just as before, the US continues to comprehensively support Ukraine in the war unleashed by Russia. At the same time, the US administration is assessing what type of weapons are needed at the moment and can be delivered promptly. Presently the Pentagon considers that enough HIMARS systems were provided, and believes that right now it is worth focusing on organising a continuous ammunition supply for HIMARS and other multiple rocket launchers.

Read MoreManipulation: Pentagon Says Ukraine Should “No Longer Expect” HIMARS and Missiles

Yes, Russian court gave US teen only months in prison for marijuana smuggling – but basketball star Griner got nine years for lesser crime – Africa Check

A Russian court sentenced Brittney Griner, a basketball star from the US, to nine years in prison for bringing a small amount of marijuana into the country. By contrast, US teenager Audrey Lorber was given a slap on the wrist for a slightly more serious case of the same crime.

Read MoreYes, Russian court gave US teen only months in prison for marijuana smuggling – but basketball star Griner got nine years for lesser crime – Africa Check

Fake: Ukrainians Selling Switchblade 300 Drones on Darknet

The alleged Switchblade 300 sale ads use photos of two different Switchblade drones, both of which were damaged and shot down in Syria in the past decade. These photographs first appeared on the web six and seven years ago, respectively.

Read MoreFake: Ukrainians Selling Switchblade 300 Drones on Darknet

Manipulation: Europe Refuses to Recognize Russia’s War in Ukraine as Aggression, Declines ‘Special Tribunal”

Russian media manipulatively distorted the sense of Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba's statement about a possible special Russia tribunal to address war crimes and atrocities committed by the Russian military in their war against Ukraine. The European Union, the United States and many other countries support the establishment of such an international tribunal, and while all agree that it is a necessity, the format of the court is still under discussion.

Read MoreManipulation: Europe Refuses to Recognize Russia’s War in Ukraine as Aggression, Declines ‘Special Tribunal”

Fake: President Zelensky Orders Catherine II Odesa Statue be Replaced with Monument of US…

The Catherine II statue is the property of the Odesa City Council. The city of Odesa, and not the Ukrainian President will decide its fate. The Ukrainian President cannot single handedly order that the Odesa statue be demolished or replaced, he simply does not have the authority or the power to do so. This is the responsibility of the local city authorities. Russian media however chose to focus only on the petition which ironically proposes to replace a Russian empress with an American porno star, which gathered 26,468 signatures of support.

Read MoreFake: President Zelensky Orders Catherine II Odesa Statue be Replaced with Monument of US…

Photo Fake: Energy-Saving Light Bulbs Disappear in the UK due to Rising Utility Costs

The photo of empty shelves with supposedly sold-out energy-saving light bulbs was actually taken in a US supermarket at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Read MorePhoto Fake: Energy-Saving Light Bulbs Disappear in the UK due to Rising Utility Costs

Fake: US Forces Kissinger to Renege on Idea for Ukraine to Cede Territory to…

Kissinger did not suggest that Ukraine cede territory to Russia. He argued that in order to start peace negotiations with Ukraine, Russia must return to the positions that existed before the war began on February 24, 2022.

Read MoreFake: US Forces Kissinger to Renege on Idea for Ukraine to Cede Territory to…