Ukraine has sustained such great losses on the battlefield, that the relatives of fallen servicemen have taken to the streets to demand the construction of new cemeteries, Russian propaganda writes. In fact, the rally called for the opening of a National Military Memorial.
Propaganda: Following Kyiv’s failed counteroffensive, Ukrainian cemeteries have no more room for Ukrainian servicemen killed by Russia.
NEWS: “Kyiv saw a rally staged by the families of killed servicemen of the Azov regiment (a terrorist organization banned in Russia), who demanded an increase in the number of cemeteries in Ukraine.
The organizers of the protest action said that the lack of burial places for KIA military has become a matter of national importance for Ukraine, prompting people to stage rallies […]. The failed counteroffensive of the Ukrainian army has resulted in a large number of casualties among military staff. All the morgues and cemeteries are lined up with the bodies of Ukrainian Army fighters killed in battle.
Old unmarked graves are being dug up in Lviv due to the shortage of burial sites in cemeteries. In Iavno-Frankivsk, the cemetery has expanded to such lengths, that the town hall decided to open electric scooter rental centers allowing people to reach the graves more easily”.
NARRATIVE: Ukrainians are demanding the building of new cemeteries to bury dead servicemen.
Fact: The rally in Kyiv was staged by the relatives of soldiers killed by Russian troops who demanded the opening of a National Military Memorial.
WHY THE NARRATIVE IS FALSE: The Russian government media describes a rally organized by the families of dead Ukrainian servicemen, calling for the opening of a National Military Memorial, as an anti-war protest action. The background context is misrepresented in order to manipulate public opinion.
The majority of media institutions in Kyiv reported on the families of Ukrainian soldiers killed in battle and their disgruntlement over delays in opening the Memorial. More specifically, Ukrainians want the authorities to construct a cemetery honoring the heroes of the war, who gave their lives to safeguard the future and liberty of Ukraine. Participants in the mass rally called on the government to speed up this process so that Kyiv should have a National Military Memorial.
Also worth noting is that on May 31, 2022, the Supreme Rada of Ukraine adopted the Law on the National Military Memorial, an homage paid to Ukraine’s fallen servicemen. Under the law, each settlement is to build a local memorial, whereas town halls must provide a site to that end. Blocking this process in some of Ukraine’s regions has generated societal unrest in the context of ongoing hostilities.
The Russian government media misrepresented the context behind this story, arguing that in light of Kyiv’s failed counteroffensive, Ukrainian cemeteries are overrun with the bodies of Ukrainian servicemen killed by Russia. The construction of the National Military Memorial and other similar local buildings has nothing to do with the Ukrainian counteroffensive, as it is a legal obligation the state pledged to enforce ever since 2022. According to associations of Ukrainian war veterans, the National Military Memorial should be built near the Bykivnia graves, the burial site of Ukrainian persecuted by the Soviet regime. According to the Ministry of Culture, the National Military Memorial will resemble Arlington Cemetery in the USA.
Therefore, Kyiv played host to a rally organized by the relatives of Ukrainian military killed by Russia, who called for the opening of a National Military Memorial, an action unrelated to the Ukrainian counteroffensive in any way.
