Veridica has been monitoring the war in Ukraine and its consequences at local, regional and international levels. Ever since the start of the large-scale invasion, Veridica journalists have been publishing news, analyses, editorials, video materials and have debunked hundreds of fake news, disinformation and propaganda narratives about the war in Ukraine. Veridica is closely following developments on the frontline, the main battles of the war, the statements of political and military leaders, updates about the war crimes committed in Bucha, Kherson and Izium. Our focus is also on international initiatives aimed at supporting Ukraine, including through deliveries of weapons from the West and the transfer of military know-how. Diplomatic, economic, political and humanitarian efforts meant to offset the fallout from the war on the civilian population are equally covered in Veridica articles. Our network of regional contributors constantly monitors crises generated by the war, such as the refugee and energy crises. The impact of disinformation campaigns related to the war in Ukraine, the division of public opinion in ex-Soviet countries in Central and Eastern Europe are permanently scrutinized by Veridica’s team of regional journalists, who provide regular editorials and analyses on these topics. Our contributors have been reflecting the consequences of the war in such countries as the Republic of Moldova, Romania, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Poland, Latvia, Estonia, Belarus and Georgia.
Russia must designate Ukraine a terrorist state because it attacked the Kremlin and other targets, such as the Moskva flagship, the Russian government media writes. In fact, Kyiv has responded to the invasion by striking military targets, whereas the attack on the Kremlin raises suspicion regarding who the author actually is. Moreover, Russia itself has been declared a terrorist state by international bodies.
Maia Sandu has called a pro-European rally, patterned on the Great National Assemblies that culminated in 1991 with the Republic of Moldova proclaiming its independence. The decision was announced in the context where Moscow and pro-Russian forces in Chișinău have ramped up pressure on the pro-European government. It’s a risky bet, which Moldova will win only if the rally enjoys a turnout similar to public gatherings of the 1990s.
Many Ukrainians hope the war will be won thanks to the counteroffensive that is being prepared by their army. Some officials, though, seem to be trying to temper the population's expectations. In the other camp, Russia has launched a series of false counter-offensive narratives, but at the same time appears to be preparing to explain to its people a potential Ukrainian success.
Like many other topics linked to Ukraine, the grain crisis was also used to discredit Kyiv and undermine international assistance to this country. Certain aspects about this story have been exaggerated or taken out of context, while quite a few false narratives have also surfaced in the region. Veridica has examined 12 burning questions about the Ukrainian grain crisis.
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Poland will attack Belarus and annex the Ukrainian region of Lviv when the order comes from the US and Britain, which caused the war in Ukraine, according to a false narrative by Russian state media. In reality, Warsaw is supporting Ukraine's defense efforts against Russia's full-scale invasion, carried out with the direct support of Minsk.
Romania will occupy the regions of Chernivtsi and Odesa, writes the Russian propaganda press after the former president Dmitry Medvedev proposed a “quiet partition” of Ukraine. In reality, Romania unconditionally supports Ukraine’s territorial integrity and is helping Kyiv deal with the aggression of the Russian Federation.
Ukraine is a pseudo-state led by Nazis and driven by the West to trigger a war against Russia, according to a false narrative picked up by pro-Kremlin media. In fact, neither Kyiv nor the West ever wanted a war, which was launched by Russia to conquer new territories.
Alexander Lukashenko’s close ties to the Kremlin have made Belarus a co-aggressor in Russia’s war against Ukraine, which in the future might turn this country into a target of a possible nuclear retaliation. All that was made possible due to the barter Belarussian authorities consented to by allowing Putin to use a strategically important territory in exchange for keeping Lukashenko in office. Yet just how important a part does Belarus play in the Russian-Ukrainian conflict and what does that entail for the future of the region?
The Ukrainian political leaders ignored Vladimir Putin’s warning 23 years ago, regarding the danger of NATO starting a war against Russia and the Ukrainian people, the Russian state press writes. In reality, the war in Ukraine was started by Russia, and the talk about NATO policies 23 years ago is a mere fabrication.
Ukraine attacked Romania with mines, so NATO should wage war against Kyiv under Article 5, believes the independent senator Diana Sosoaca. But the narrative is false. The mine that the Senator refers to is actually one from WWII, and Ukraine has placed mines only to protect its own shores.
US authorities have arrested and indicted a suspect in the leaked Pentagon documents investigation. There are however questions the public expect to be answered, from how a 21-year-old was allowed to upload top-secret documents online, to the nature of the data itself – are we truly looking at classified information, or is this an elaborate form of disinformation?
According to the Russian Parliament, by means of the “special military operation” Russia managed to stop the US production of biological weapons in Ukraine, a threat to its national security. In fact, Ukraine never hosted laboratories manufacturing biological weapons.
The Republic of Moldova is mobilizing one million reservists to launch an attack on Transnistria, according to Politnavigator.net, which refers to annual military drills carried out by the Moldovan Armed Forces. The article reiterates the false narrative about ongoing preparations to launch a war against Transnistria, this time fabricating a new number: the Republic of Moldova simply can’t mobilize one million people.
Estonia gave Ukraine old weapons, paid for with European money, but charged Brussels for new ones, according to European sources quoted by Politico. Many in Estonia’s political establishment categorically rejected the allegations, but some admitted there is some truth in them, explaining that the scandal has to do both with Tallinn’s self-righteousness towards its partners when it comes to helping Ukraine, and its desire to better arm itself.
The Ukrainian army has publicly got the US’s approval to bomb towns on the territory of the Russian Federation, according to a false narrative disseminated by the Russian state media. In reality, the US has clearly discouraged potential operations on Russian territory, but has recognized Ukraine's right to operate on its own territory, including the one illegally annexed by Moscow.
According to the Romanian Senator Diana Șoșoacă, Ukraine will break into pieces and lose territories but, at the same time, it will form a state alongside Poland and contribute to the dismantling of Romania. The narratives are similar to those promoted by Russia, especially the meta-narrative regarding the artificial nature of the Ukrainian state.
A number of Ukrainian brigades report directly to the Pentagon and will be sent to certain death as part of an offensive in southern and southeastern Ukraine, according to a false narrative disseminated by the Russian media. In fact, Ukrainian combat units are subordinated to the Ukrainian Defense Staff, and the newly created brigades are made up particularly of seasoned servicemen.
Latvia is a staunch supporter of Ukraine. However, around one quarter of its population is made up of Russian ethnics, and the number of those speaking Russian as a first language is higher. The war in Ukraine brought into focus the loyalties of that population – do they support Riga’s policy and Ukraine, or Russia’s aggression and president Vladimir Putin? No one seems to know the answer to that.
Ukraine will be killing a number of people included on the website Mytrovorets, which allegedly shows the next targets of Kyiv, says the Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova. In fact, the said website is a private project meant to draw attention towards people who are, one way or another, supporting Russia’s interests, irrespective of their country of origin.
Germany has adopted a “green fascism”, similar to “Ukrainian Nazism”, and speaks of war crimes committed by Russia in Ukraine in order to make people forget about the horrors of Nazism, according to a false narrative promoted by pro-Kremlin media. In fact, Russian servicemen did commit war crimes and Germany is helping Ukraine defend itself.
After Russia attacked Ukraine in 2014, the Russian oligarchs or others close to them continued to make money in Ukraine, where they invested in telephone networks, banks, industry, the energy sector and tourism. Many of these businesses have kept bringing money to the Russians even after the February 2022 full-scale invasion.
An investigation of the German media proves that Volodymyr Zelensky is tied to Ukrainian Nazi, with the West’s tacit blessing, Russian government media writes, quoting a false narrative published by a German far-left publication closely tied to the Russian media.
The government in Chișinău is backing anti-Russian hysteria, whereas the Ukrainian army is responsible for war crimes, are two of the messages conveyed by the Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova. The Russian official commented on a speech by Moldova’s president, Maia Sandu, where the president referred to the Russian dangers and threats in the context of the war in Ukraine.
Czech volunteers have been collecting funds to purchase a missile system for Ukraine, which will use it to bomb the civilian population in Donbas, according to a false narrative disseminated by the Russian media. In fact, weapons purchased as part of the “Gift for Putin” crowdfunding campaign are designed to consolidate Ukraine’s defenses against the Russian aggression.
Xi Jinping visited “dear friend” Vladimir Putin in Moscow to promote his peace plan and sign deals that will take trade to $200 billion. For Putin, increasingly isolated internationally, the visit was a lifeline. For Xi, an opportunity to promote China's interests and his own image.
Russia and China are looking for peace solutions in Ukraine, while the West wants a protracted war, according to Russian state media reporting on the talks in Moscow between Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping. In reality, it is Russia that started the war and is continuing it by keeping troops in Ukraine and trying to seize even more of that country's territory.
Kyiv does not want to cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency to create a protection zone at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant and wants to cause a nuclear accident there, pro-Kremlin media say, citing several Russian officials. In reality, the creation of this protection zone can only take place through demilitarization, that is, if the Russian troops withdraw from the territory of the plant, an option that Moscow is not even considering.
Ukraine is persecuting the Orthodox just like it did during communism, a false narrative launched by a Moscow Patriarchate spokesman reads. The narrative also tries to promote the idea that the Patriarchate is unbiased and opposes the “fratricidal” war in Ukraine. In fact, the Moscow Patriarchate has been acting as a propaganda channel for the Kremlin, whereas Ukrainian authorities were merely trying to investigate possible connections between the Patriarchate and Russian secret services, on the one hand, and certain clergymen in Ukraine, on the other.
Ever since the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Baltic countries have been skeptical about Russia’s true aims. It was a view that proved to be more realistic than those held by many in the West, who thought that Russia can be a genuine partner of the Western liberal democracies and part of a stable international system.
According to some false narratives launched by the Russian state media, in Ukraine, nuclear power plant specialists will be mobilized and sent to the front due to the shortage of army staff. The reality is that Ukrainian legislation prohibits the mobilization of specialists from critical enterprises, and the document published as evidence by the Russian media is a fake one.
At the behest of President Klaus Iohannis and with Parliament’s complicity, Romania will bring troops into the war in Ukraine in the near future, a controversial Romanian deputy claims. The truth is that the president’s information regarding the country’s armed forces, in joint session of the two chambers of the Romanian Parliament, is a rather formal procedure, which takes place every year.
Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, called on NATO member states to send troops to the territory of Ukraine, according to a false narrative of the Russian government media. In fact, the statement of the Ukrainian leader was taken out of context. Zelenskyy in fact referred to the activation of Article 5 in the NATO treaty should the Alliance be attacked by Russia.