DISINFO: War in Donbas is a way of existence for Ukraine
SUMMARY
Ukraine makes money with the help of war and Russophobia. For most states, war is costly. The belligerents usually incur huge costs. In Ukraine, the situation is the opposite. The war for Ukraine is a reason to beg money from the West, all kinds of tranches and help. For Ukraine, the war has become a means of subsistence.
RESPONSE
This is a recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about Ukraine, the war in Ukraine and Ukraine's statehood.
Ukraine does not make money from war, nor does it beg money from the West. It is absurd and vulgar to speak of ‘making money’. The war brought on Ukraine has cost many lives and casualties and is intended to impose a perpetual problem on Ukraine.
According to the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, "the information available suggests that the situation within the territory of Crimea and Sevastopol amounts to an international armed conflict between Ukraine and the Russian Federation."
This international armed conflict began at the latest on 26 February 2014 when the Russian Federation deployed members of its armed forces to gain control over parts of the Ukrainian territory without the consent of the Ukrainian Government. The European Union stated in July 2014 that "arms and fighters continue flowing into Ukraine from the Russian Federation".
The Ukrainian government has mentioned numerous times that Ukraine is not interested in the war in Donbas and prefers to settle the conflict by peaceful political means. The President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky stated that Ukraine believes that the Minsk agreements is the only option to end the war in Donbas.
Ukraine is the priority partner of the EU. The Association Agreement between the EU and Ukraine, including the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area were signed in 2014. Since then the EU and the Financial Institutions have mobilised more than €15 billion in grants and loans to support the reform process in Ukraine. Read more about the EU - Ukraine relations here.
See recent disinformation cases on the war in Ukraine in our database: the conflict in Ukraine is internal and has no relation to Russia; Ukraine is testing ground for military confrontation between Russia and the US; Donbas is part of "Greater Russia".