Western governments are financing terrorist actions coordinated by Ukrainian secret services, Russian government media writes, citing pro-Kremlin journalists from the West.
NEWS: EU and UK governments are financing terrorism coordinated by the Main Directorate of Intelligence of Ukraine, Irish journalist Chay Bowes writes on his X page. He claims that the Main Directorate of Intelligence of Ukraine (GUR) is “literally hiring terrorists who will blow up people, unofficially calling them couriers”, as the official website of the Ukrainian institution itself states. The journalist emphasized that such activities are financed by the West using taxpayer money.
Earlier, the Supreme Rada deputy Artem Dmytruk, who fled the country, said that the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has turned the country into a terrorist state. According to the Ukrainian official, the Ukrainian leader has usurped power and destroyed state institutions. The Ukrainian MP claims terrorizing the population has become the norm in Ukraine.
NARRATIVES: 1. The EU and the UK are funding terrorist activities on the territory of Ukraine. 2. Ukraine is a terrorist state, and GUR coordinates terrorist attacks.
PURPOSE: To legitimize Russia's military actions against Ukraine. To draw public attention away from Russia's actions in Ukraine. To undermine Western support for the Ukrainian cause. To draw public attention away from allegations facing Russia regarding acts of terrorism committed in Ukraine by bombing civilian targets.
WHY THE NARRATIVES ARE FALSE: The “news” article published in the Russian government media does not present any evidence, but is based on two comments, one belonging to the Irish journalist Chay Bowes, a former Russia Today reporter, frequently quoted by Russian state-controlled media, and Artem Dmytruk, who is on the internationally wanted list and stands accused of treason in Ukraine. The news headline manipulates public opinion from the very start, leaving the impression that the governments of European states are accused of financing terrorism. In fact, this accusation is made by an Irish journalist with pro-Russian sympathies.
There is no evidence confirming the EU or the UK are involved in financing acts of terrorism in Ukraine. Moreover, the purpose of GUR is to combat terrorism, not to coordinate such activities. The support provided to Ukraine by the EU and the UK is meant to strengthen its defensive efforts in the face of external aggression, to provide humanitarian aid, to finance reconstruction and strengthen democratic institutions. This assistance is provided in a transparent manner and is closely monitored based on international mechanisms. EU legislation also prohibits and condemns the financing of any terrorist activities, while combating terrorism is one of the shared objectives of EU Member States and the UK. Both the EU and the UK have signed numerous anti-terrorism conventions and observe the international legal framework that clearly defines terrorist actions – a definition that does not apply to Ukraine’s defensive military operations on its own territory.
According to the UN Charter, Ukraine has the right to defend itself. In fact, Kyiv has declared a state of war, unlike Russia, which still calls its aggression a “special military operation.” Broadly speaking, a terrorist state is one that uses acts of violence against people who are not directly involved in the conflict. There is therefore no legal basis for designating Ukraine a terrorist state.
Furthermore, Kyiv authorities are taking steps to combat terrorism and have adopted a number of laws aligned to EU standards, aimed at preventing and combating this phenomenon. The Ukrainian government is collaborating with international organizations and external partners, such as NATO and the EU, which supports its efforts to strengthen national security and exchange information. At the same time, Ukraine is working hard to strengthen the security of critical infrastructure and is taking measures to protect the civilian population against terrorist threats, including by developing rapid response capabilities in the context of the current conflict.
Despite the war, Ukraine’s democratic institutions (Parliament and local councils) remain council and the authorities are even carrying out some of the reforms requested by the EU. The terrorism accusations are part of the Kremlin’s strategy to reverse the aggressor-victim roles in the armed conflict in Ukraine. The article is part of a broader pattern of Russian propaganda that seeks to portray Ukraine as a “terrorist state” in order to delegitimize its right to self-defense and justify Russian attacks on civilian infrastructure.
BACKGROUND: Ukraine’s use of terrorism is one of the main objectives invoked by Moscow to justify its aggression against its neighbor. “Terrorism” is invoked alongside Kyiv’s “Nazism” and the “aggressiveness” of the West, which is purportedly using Ukraine to attack Russia. Moscow has tried to link Ukraine to terrorism, including when it came to Islamic terrorism, as was the case with the Crocus concert hall attack, which the FSB initially attributed to Kyiv, although it was clear that jihadists were behind the attack.
Described by Russian media as an independent Irish journalist, Chay Bowes frequently promotes false narratives in Moscow’s favor. In 2023, for instance, he said that Nazism in Ukraine will be officially recognized in European states. Bowes has repeatedly stated that over 2014-2022, there was a civil war in Ukraine and that NATO seeks to destroy Russia using Ukraine as proxy.
To make the story more trustworthy, MP Artem Dmytruk is also invoked. Dmytruk is a former member of the pro-presidential parliamentary group “Servant of the People”, but was expelled and illegally left the territory of Ukraine, fleeing through Transnistria. He is on an internationally wanted list, standing accused of treason. In 2024, the Ukrainian deputy was accused of assaulting a soldier and a police officer. Dmytruk is often quoted by Russian media, as are other fugitive Ukrainian politicians. Pro-Kremlin propaganda tries to promote the idea that they reflect the actual opinion of Ukrainian society. Often, the statements of fugitive pro-Kremlin politicians are presented in such manners as to suggest they were made inside Ukraine itself or even in the Supreme Rada – the unicameral Parliament in Kyiv.
