DISINFO: Russia is not part of the internal conflict in Ukraine
SUMMARY
The government in Kyiv is considering buying weapons from the United Kingdom as it is trying to enhance its military relations with the West since a conflict started in the Eastern part of Donbas. Ukraine believes that Russia is responsible for this conflict but it is well known that Moscow was never a part of the internal conflict in Ukraine.
RESPONSE
This is a recurring disinformation narrative from pro-Kremlin outlets claiming that only Ukraine and the two pro-Kremlin illegal separatists territories are warring sides in the Donbas conflict, while Russia is not part of this conflict but is a mediator.
It is an internationally established fact that Russia is a party to the Donbas conflict. The leaders of the Group of Seven, who met in Cornwall on 11-13 June 2021, said in a communiqué: “We remain firmly of the view that Russia is a party to the conflict in Eastern Ukraine, not a mediator.”
Even though officially a state of war between Russia and Ukraine has never been announced, there is irrefutable evidence of direct Russian military involvement in Eastern Ukraine since February 2014. The involvement of Russian personnel and equipment has been well documented for years and includes firing artillery over the border into Ukraine, the deployment of armoured vehicles and troops in contested provinces of Eastern Ukraine, the use of non-state actors such as Russian private military companies, and the launching of thousands of cyber attacks against Ukrainian targets.
Read more disinformation cases claiming that Russia is not a party to the conflict and that Ukraine violates the Minsk agreements.