Category Russia

Fact Check: Did JD Vance Say US ‘Military Action’ Available Against Russia?

True.

JD Vance did say that "military tools of leverage" could be used if Moscow did not cooperate with the terms of a negotiation that ended fighting between Russia and Ukraine. He did rule out U.S. deployment, saying "the president is very clear that whenever he walks into negotiation, everything is on the table."

While Vance claimed his words were "twisted," a full transcript shows he did not rule out military action.

February 18, 2025
Context Fact checks / debunkings International community Narratives Negotiations and peace deals President Donald Trump Russia Treaties & agreements Ukraine USA

Fact Check: Trump Says Russia Has Lost 1.5 Million Troops In Ukraine War

There are no estimates that 1.5 million Russian soldiers have been killed and wounded since Russia invaded Ukraine. Recent analyses suggest manpower losses of around 780,000 as of early January 2025. Ukrainian government estimates from February 2025 claim 850,000 Russian troop losses. While the Ukrainian government is thought to have overcounted Russian losses and undercounted its own, some of its recent assessments have been similar to those by government and expert analyses outside of Kyiv.

An independent analyst told Newsweek that Trump's estimate of Russian losses had "no basis in reality."

February 14, 2025
Aid to Ukraine Disinformation Fact checks / debunkings International community Misconceptions President Donald Trump Russia Ukraine USA

Trump’s ‘make peace or die’ message to Putin is deepfake – yet it fooled Russians

On Jan. 27, Andrey Isayev, a member of Russia's State Duma (the lower house of parliament), accused U.S. President Donald Trump of trying to "rudely" force Russian President Vladimir Putin to start peace negotiations with Ukraine. [...]

"Trump threatened our president rather rudely, it must be said, pressuring to start the negotiations and reminding of Qaddafi's fate."

The claim is false.

False claims USAID paid celebs to visit Ukraine linked to Russian disinformation campaign

WHAT WAS CLAIMED: E! News published a video stating celebrities received funds from USAID to visit Ukraine.

OUR VERDICT: False. The video is fake and there's no evidence USAID funded the visits.

February 10, 2025
Aid to Ukraine Corruption Disinformation Fact checks / debunkings International community Misconceptions Russia Russian propaganda Ukraine USA

Fake: USAID Funded Hollywood Celebrities’ Visits to Ukraine During War – E!News

The E!News portal never published such a story, and the widely circulated news is fake, debunked by both the media and the celebrities who visited Ukraine.

1,000 days of Russia’s full-scale war on Ukraine: 5 facts you need to know – European Commission

As Ukraine braces for colder months, a well-coordinated and adaptive humanitarian response will be fundamental to help save lives.

Here are 5 facts you need to know about the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine:

November 19, 2024
Attacks on civilians Russia Ukraine War crimes

Fake: Ukraine Admits that Foreign Mercenaries Left the Country for the War in Israel

This video has never been shown on Ukrainian television. To create a fake video, its authors used the real story of the American news program CBS Mornings and replaced its audio track.

Manipulation: Russia May Outpace Europe and USA in GDP Growth Says The New York…

The New York Times article does indeed contain a prediction that Russia may outpace European countries and the United States in terms of economic growth this year. However, this forecast does not belong to the NYT economic columnist Patricia Cohen, as the Russian media claim, but to the Central Bank of the Russian Federation. Also, Russian media cover only a part of the article - the part about the resilience of the Russian economy to Western sanctions. Instead, the main idea of the publication, which is to prove that the Russian economy is currently working to wage war in Ukraine, remains unaddressed by propagandists. Russian publications also ignore the problems in the consumer sector that Russians are currently facing.

Fake: In USA Ad Сalls Not to “Burn Money” to Support Israel, but to Help Ukraine – Video

Advertising campaign calling for "stand with Ukraine," which was allegedly initiated by the Ukrainian government, is fake. The corporation that installed the billboard shown in the video denied the existence of such an advertisement.

October 14, 2024
Coordinated disinformation Fact checks / debunkings International community Israel Misconceptions Russia Russian propaganda Ukraine USA

Manipulation: Fukuyama Claims Ukraine Won’t Be Able to Return All Its Territories

Francis Fukuyama did not make such statements in an interview with Radio Svoboda. This conclusion was made by the Russian media. In reality, the American philosopher noted that the only way for Russia to leave the occupied territories is Ukraine's victory. He also said that "the issue that Ukraine will face in the future is the possibility that not 100 percent can be liberated". Yet he specified that all discussions about territorial concessions during future negotiations are speculative, and only the Ukrainians themselves should answer these questions and make decisions.