DISINFO: Alleged missile attack on shopping centre in Kremenchuk linked to Zelenskyy's desire for more weapons and money from G7
SUMMARY
Strange incidents related to the alleged rocket attack on the shopping centre "Amstor" in Kremenchuk have become known on the Internet.
Perhaps most importantly, no one has yet produced photos or videos of the moment of impact. Previously, every Russian missile was recorded by hundreds of CCTV cameras or ordinary citizens, now there is nothing.
The fifth interesting point is the date of the alleged strike - the second day of the G7 summit to which Volodymyr Zelenskyy was invited. There he is supposed to announce more "Russian atrocities" and ask for more money and weapons.
RESPONSE
Disinformation narrative from pro-Kremlin outlets accusing Ukraine of killing civilians and staging provocations in order to deflect Russian responsability. This claim was made in the context of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine.
There is ample evidence that it was Russian pilots who struck the shopping mall in the city of Kremenchuk on 27 June 2022. Ukraine’s Air Force Command established that X-22 missiles were fired from far-range Tu-22 M3 bombers in the skies over Russia. The bombers scrambled from an airfield in Russia’s Kaluga region and launched the missiles when they were flying over the Kursk region in Russia. Ukraine’s Interior Ministry said the names of the Russian pilots who struck the mall are already known. At the time of writing this case, over 20 people were reported dead, 59 injured and 25 hospitalised. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba condemned Russian reactions to the shopping mall strike.
Russia’s Defence Ministry itself admitted targeting the city of Kremenchuk with a high-precision strike, although it said that a military object was hit. According to it, Western weapons detonated in the warehouse, which caused a fire at a nearby shopping mall that was closed. It is not true because there was no military object with Western weapons near the shopping mall.
The EU condemns the Russian missile attack as another heinous act.
Read more about the EU's response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine along with EU vs Disinfo's Guide to Deciphering Pro-Kremlin disinformation around Putin's War.