DISINFO: Nazism has revived in Ukraine and actively cultivated by the West
SUMMARY
In Ukraine, we [Russia] are at war with the West and Nazism, which has been revived in this country and is actively cultivated by our Western colleagues.
RESPONSE
This claim is part of a disinformation campaign aiming to justify Russia’s unjustified military invasion of Ukraine. It is also consistent with disinformation narratives about Nazi Ukraine, it being a non-sovereign, West-ruled country, and the West allegedly having a belligerent and hostile anti-Russian agenda.
The myth of ‘Nazi Ukraine’ has been widely used by Putin and pro-Kremlin outlets since Russia attacked Ukraine and illegally annexed Crimea in 2014. The myth of Nazi-ruled Ukraine appeared during the Euromaidan popular protests in late 2013 - early 2014, falsely presented in pro-Kremlin disinformation as a coup. The Kremlin has been using this myth since then to discredit Ukraine's shift towards Euro-Atlantic policy.
Read our articles on the 7 myths of pro-Kremlin disinformation about the Russian military buildup near Ukraine, and how the Kremlin fabricated pretexts for the further invasion of Ukraine, as well as, the narrative of ‘Nazis’ being one of the key pro-Kremlin disinformation messages. For background, see vol. 1, vol. 2, and vol.3 of the series “What he said and what it really means”.