DISINFO: The US could use nuclear arms because Russia is winning in Ukraine

DISINFORMATION CASE DETAILS

AI translations:

DISINFO: The US could use nuclear arms because Russia is winning in Ukraine

SUMMARY

Thanks to the proxy war against Russia in Ukraine, the US is desperately trying to preserve a unilateral world order. However, the Russian special military operation remains victorious despite US’s military assistance to the Kyiv regime. And European NATO member states have greatly depleted their military arsenals. Facing a geopolitical fiasco, within a half a year the US may use tactical nuclear weapons in Ukraine. Amid the critical situation that the US and NATO found themselves in, they are trying to get a pause in the proxy war at any price. They look forward to a ceasefire in order to develop their military and industrial capacity, to boost a puppet Ukrainian army, and to prepare the Polish army to undertake another ‘Drang nach Osten’ attempt.

RESPONSE

Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narratives about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as a Western proxy war against Russia and the inevitability of Russia’s victory, which have been permanent features of pro-Kremlin disinformation since the start of the invasion. This disinformation message aims to undermine international support for Ukraine’s defence against Russia’s aggression by portraying this fight as hopeless.

Accusing others of “false flag operations” and “setups” – in this case the US in a possible use of nuclear arms in Ukraine – are frequent pro-Kremlin disinformation techniques. They serve to increase tensions or cover Russia’s own illicit actions. The Kremlin has been famous for a nuclear blackmail campaign and irresponsible nuclear arms sabre-rattling.

Poland is frequently presented by pro-Kremlin disinformation as an aggressive anti-Russian NATO “outpost”, which allegedly poses a security threat to Russia, in line with how pro-Kremlin outlets portray NATO and Western countries as aggressive towards Russia. See our article All roads lead to Poland.

Furthermore, through a reference to Nazi “Drang nach Osten” expansionist plan the publication attempts to draw a faulty parallel between the current western countries and Nazi Germany. Read more about the narrative of ‘Nazis’ in pro-Kremlin disinformation space.

The conflict in Ukraine is not a “proxy war against Russia” but the result of Russia’s unprovoked aggression, culminating in its February 2022 invasion of the country, for which Ukraine received international support for its self-defence in line with Article 51 of the UN Charter. Ukraine is not fighting on behalf of any foreign government or organisation. It is a sovereign and independent state with a democratically elected president and parliament.

See earlier disinformation cases claiming that the West turns Poland into another “Reich” for a new “Drang nach Osten”, that Western military aid to Ukraine only will cause more suffering, that Western weapons supplies to Ukraine are exacerbating the conflict, that the West kills Ukrainians by sending them weapons they don’t know how to use, and that NATO promotes fascism in Europe and uses proxy wars to destroy Russia.

Disclaimer

Cases in the EUvsDisinfo database focus on messages in the international information space that are identified as providing a partial, distorted, or false depiction of reality and spread key pro-Kremlin messages. This does not necessarily imply, however, that a given outlet is linked to the Kremlin or editorially pro-Kremlin, or that it has intentionally sought to disinform. EUvsDisinfo publications do not represent an official EU position, as the information and opinions expressed are based on media reporting and analysis of the East Stratcom Task Force.

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