Latest fact checks & sources

The sanctions on Russia, introduced by the US and the EU, do not violate international law or any regulations as they are an entirely legitimate mechanism. Sanctions are a key tool of the EU’s Common Foreign and Security Policy.

Die Zeit provided perspective on the $5 billion spent by USAID (not NATO) on democracy development over 23 years, clarifying that these funds did not support the EuroMaidan movement. As this database consistently emphasises, contrary to claims by the Kremlin, there was no coup in Ukraine in 2014. Moreover, the United States did not play any role in the events that unfolded

Kyiv is the capital of Ukraine and was earlier the largest city of the medieval state of Kyivan Rus’ also named Ruthenia. The heritage of the Kyivan Rus’ is claimed by the Kremlin for political reasons but the history of the Russian state is different and more complex than the official narrative.

The claim that Zelenskyy uses the war for personal embezzlement is made without any evidence. International support is used by Ukraine to defend itself against the unjustified and unprovoked Russian invasion of Ukraine which started on February 24, 2022, and to support the economy in the context of Russia’s full-scale invasion.

EU and US leaders are not threatening Russia with nuclear weapons or conventional warfare. They have been trying to establish good-neighbourly relations with Russia since the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991. In 1997, Russia and NATO signed the Founding Act on Mutual Relations, Cooperation and Security which said that ‘NATO and Russia do not consider each other as adversaries.’ Several disarmament initiatives have been launched since then.

France and Germany, among other EU nations, played a significant role in the preparation of the Minsk Agreements, in collaboration with Ukraine and Russia. The Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) also had a crucial part in this process. Among other provisions, these agreements called for a complete ceasefire and the holding of elections in the Russian-occupied parts of Donetsk and Luhansk Oblasts, in accordance with Ukrainian law. Ukraine was committed to implementing the Minsk Agreements; however, the implementation was continually disrupted by Moscow-backed military formations.

This is exactly what NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg spoke about in an interview with RFE/RL on February 23, 2024. The NATO Secretary General noted that Ukraine, when it receives F-16 fighters from its allies, according to international law, can strike military targets in Russia. However, Stoltenberg added, this issue will be resolved by the countries supplying F-16 fighters to Ukraine.

On 21-22 February, Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan was in France for a two-day working visit. The purpose of the visit was the ceremony of the transfer of remains of Missak & Mélinée Manouchian and their comrades in the French resistance against Nazism into the Pantheon.

The Armenian Prime Minister officially met with the French President on 22 February 2024, without secrecy. A joint declaration was made to the press. The purpose of the visit was the ceremony for the transfer of the remains of Missak and Mélinée Manouchian and their comrades of resistance against Nazism into the Panthéon.

Ukraine’s history dates back to the times of early Slavic tribes and principalities in the 9th to 13th centuries in and around Kyiv. Communist Russia took control of Ukraine from 1919 to 1920 and established a Bolshevik regime there. Moscow performed aggressive anti-Ukrainian policies, exterminating the population during famines. Present-day Ukraine has been on the world map since 1991 when the Soviet Union disintegrated.

On February 25, 2024, NATO military exercises Dragon-24 started in Poland. This part of the exercise on Polish territory is a key element of the largest NATO exercise since 1988, Steadfast Defender 2024. The military maneuvers are in no way related to the deployment of NATO troops to Ukraine. NATO has repeatedly emphasised that the Alliance is not involved in the Russian war and does not intend to send its troops into the territory of Ukraine.

The conspiracy theory about Georgian snipers shooting at Maidan protesters on 20 February 2014 has been previously debunked and is not supported by evidence. Pro-Kremlin disinformation has spread different versions of the identity of the snipers. For further debunking about recurring disinformation on the Georgian snipers, see Myth Detector (also here and here), StopFake, The Insider and Polygraph.

The British Council is the UK’s international organisation for cultural relations and educational opportunities. The British Council works in over 100 countries and its aim is to build mutually beneficial cultural and educational relationships between the UK and other countries. The British Council has been working in Ukraine since 1992. The British Council in Ukraine is a non-political organisation and does not have any political agenda. It is registered as a legal entity and operates in accordance with Ukrainian law. Although the British Council receives a government grant in aid, it is operationally independent from the UK government.

In a report by the Washington Post, Kremlin documents expose Putin’s administration using Russian political strategists to push a disinformation campaign against Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky.

No evidence of lethal Pfizer trial in Ukraine

The former president continued to criticize fellow NATO members’ spending, but he overstated how much more the U.S. has spent to fund Ukraine’s defense.

Not content with simply creating and spreading fake news, anti-Ukraine trolls are now also using a new disinformation tactic: a method dubbed “Operation Matryoshka” (or Russian doll), which has been exposed by the “Bot Blocker” collective and AFP fact checkers. It is designed to divert the attention of journalists and muddy the waters of information even more.

True. Based on a Russian transcript of Vladimir Putin’s interview with Tucker Carlson, Newsweek verified Putin said Adolf Hitler was “forced” to invade Poland, an inaccurate interpretation of the circumstances leading to World War II. While translations do not use the word “forced” or “compelled”, they broadly match its meaning.

False. The claim that the Mirotvorets list, which Alex Jones and Infowars refer to as a “kill list,” is inaccurate, as is the claim that Tucker Carlson was added to it following reports he had interviewed Vladimir Putin. The list does not advocate violence toward those on it, which is part of an NGO, non-state-funded effort by Ukrainian activists to list “enemies of Ukraine.” Carlson has been listed on the site since mid-2023.

Military Watch Magazine regularly spreads pro-Russian propaganda. Experts note the advantages of Western tanks over Russian ones