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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.
Propaganda: Poland will get into a war with Russia after attacking Belarus and occupying Lviv
NEWS: “The Russians must not hope that someone will secure their victory by calling for peace in the streets of London or Berlin. No, the Russians must solve their own problems, preferably on the streets of Kyiv. […] A war between Poland and Russia will not happen following a tweet by former Russian President Medvedev, who often seems overly wise, while Polish politicians are quite peevish. Moscow will not order its troops to start the war, it does not want this, and neither will Warsaw, because it cannot give such orders, as everything is decided in London and Washington.
[…] There could be a Polish attack on Belarus ordered by the Anglo-Saxons, followed by a troop deployment in Lviv, "to defend the local Ukrainian population from the Russian aggression". This means the emergence of a new Polish-Russian front.
If this happens, it will be a disaster for Poland. We must recover Lviv, but as hosts, not as bodyguards for Banderovists. Russia is our natural economic partner and also a valuable ally if Poland finally decides to follow its own geopolitical and civilizational path, independent of the influence of the West that is colonizing us."
NARRATIVE: The West will order Poland to attack Belarus and occupy Lviv
Fact: Poland is supporting Ukraine's defense efforts against Russia's full-scale invasion, carried out with the support of Belarus
WHY THE NARRATIVE IS FALSE: To convince the public of Poland's belligerent intentions against Ukraine, Belarus and Russia, the false narrative relies on the words of Konrad Rękas, presented by the Russian media as an independent Polish political analyst. In an interview for Ukraina.ru, he resumes a series of traditional propaganda messages and launches new ones. According to him, Poland is a colony of the West, which will do whatever the American or British political leaders say, while European citizens are protesting in various cities against the war started by NATO on the territory of Ukraine. The analyst advises Moscow to win the war as quickly as possible and not count on Europe's support.
In reality, Konrad Rękas is not an independent political scientist. He was a member of various Polish nationalist parties, having worked as a columnist and correspondent for the Moscow-based newspaper Pravda. The Polish political scientist is also a member of the European Center for Geopolitical Analysis, based in Poland, with branches in Russia. This center, according to the Russian media, sent observers to various elections in separatist regions such as Ossetia, Abkhazia or Transnistria.
Rękas does not represent Polish academia. Most of the times he promotes Russian propaganda narratives, like many other foreign experts who collaborate with pro-Kremlin media. Based on the statements made by Rękas, the Russian press tries to convince the public opinion that Russia is a victim of the war, and Poland – a puppet of the West. In October 2022 this pro-Kremlin political scientist stated that Russia is showing restraint in the war in Ukraine, especially when attacking civilian targets.
74% of the Poles believe that Russia could attack Poland in the near future.
In fact, Warsaw has become a target of Russian propaganda because it has been the most vocal of all of Ukraine's neighbors about countering the Russian aggression and supporting Kyiv’s defensive efforts. According to a sociological survey, 74% of the Poles believe that Russia could attach Poland in the near future.
The false narrative emerged after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy paid a visit to Poland in early April. The highlight of the one-day visit was the meeting of the Ukrainian guest and his Polish counterpart Andrzej Duda with Poles and Ukrainians at the Royal Castle in Warsaw. “Russia will never win if Pole and a Ukrainian stand shoulder to shoulder. We stand together in this war and we will rejoice together in peace. Shoulder to shoulder, together in the EU and NATO”, Zelenskiy said, his speech repeatedly interrupted by applause.
On September 29, 2022, the Secretary of the Chancellery of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Poland, Stanisław Żaryn, had to react to repeated fake news about his state's desire to attack Ukraine, writing on Twitter that "Russian propaganda continues its information attacks against Poland”, repeating lies about alleged plans by the Polish authorities to attack Ukraine and annex the western part of Ukraine
As for Belarus, Poland has shown no aggressive intent towards it, not even when Minsk pushed refugees from the Middle East to Polish borders in a destabilization attempt that was probably coordinated with its main ally, Russia. There have also been harsh statements towards Poland, as well as accusations - some coming directly from Minsk, others through Russian propaganda - regarding NATO/Poland’s alleged aggressive intentions.
Veridica has debunked a series of Russian false narratives regarding a possible Polish aggression against Ukraine and Belarus’ justified fear of a NATO invasion. The Russian press wrote that a referendum on joining Poland will be held in the Lviv region, after which Warsaw will start a war against Russia. Moscow publications have tried to convince the public opinion that Poland will collaborate with Hungary and Romania to seize part of Ukraine. According to Russian propaganda, Belarus and Russia are forming a joint military group to defend themselves against Ukrainian terrorist attacks and a possible NATO aggression.
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