Fact checks

Russian propaganda has faked a report about "40,000 bodies of fallen Ukrainian soldiers" in Russia Russian media outlets and Telegram channels are circulating reports that Russia is allegedly holding the bodies of 40,000 dead Ukrainian soldiers. These reports claim to reference U.S. news outlet Politico and allege that Ukraine refuses to receive the bodies to avoid paying compensation to the soldiers' families. This is fake news. Politico has not published any such report. The source of this false story is the Russian outlet Life.ru, which included a link to Politico's website in its publication, but no such article exists on…

Russia has forged an ISW video clip Russian media outlets are spreading a falsified video bearing the logo of the U.S.-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW), featuring purported comments by American political analyst William Kristol. The video claims that following Ukraine's large-scale drone attack on Russian strategic bombers on June 1, 2025, Ukrainian soldiers began surrendering en masse. The supposed Kristol quote likens the situation to the Vietnam War, suggesting that military success failed to boost morale due to troop exhaustion. This is a fabrication. The video in question does not exist on ISW's official website or its…

Russian propaganda forged a photo from Google Maps Russian Telegram channels are circulating photos taken at the French restaurant Bocca Mar, situated on the Mediterranean coast in Nice. Among the restaurant's guests is a man who allegedly resembles Ukrainian Major General Eduard Moskaliov, who was appointed on August 15, 2024, as the head of the military commandant's office established in Ukrainian-controlled areas of Russia's Kursk region. Propagandists claim that following the withdrawal of Ukrainian forces from certain positions in the Kursk region, the Ukrainian general supposedly fled to France. This claim is false. The photo was mirrored and edited using…

Russia fabricates a news report using Haber7.com branding Russian Telegram channels are circulating a video featuring the logo of Turkish media outlet Haber7.com, claiming that negotiations between the Russian and Ukrainian delegations held in Istanbul on June 2 were conducted in Russian. The supposed reason is a scandal allegedly occurring on May 16, 2025, when a Ukrainian interpreter allegedly "fled" to avoid returning to Ukraine. This is false. Haber7.com never published such a video. It does not exist on the outlet's official website or social media platforms. The story about the alleged defection of a Ukrainian interpreter on May 16 is also fake. The Center…

Russia has fabricated a funeral video of a Ukrainian soldier and forged a regional news article from Poltava region Russian media outlets, pro-war Telegram channels, and bot accounts on the social media platform X are spreading a video allegedly showing the funeral of a Ukrainian service member. The video caption reads "Just how you wanted it, bro" accompanied by hamburger emojis, and features music from a McDonald's Big Tasty commercial. The claim is that the deceased was a young soldier who had wished to be buried to the jingle from the fast-food ad. This is fake. The footage is actually…

Russian media outlets and Telegram channels are reporting that Svitlana Zinchuk, allegedly the head of the Union of Polish Language Teachers of Volyn Region, is distributing a map among students of the Polish Institute at Lesya Ukrainka Volyn National University, which depicts a "hypothetical future region" as part of the Republic of Poland. The posts include an image of the map supposedly handed out to students, where Ukraine's Volyn region is shown as part of Poland. Propaganda publications claim that this is how the population is being prepared for Volyn's separation from Ukraine. This is false. Speaking to Ukrinform, Svitlana…

Russian trolls fabricated an Instagram story on a fan account of the famous director Russian bots on social media are spreading a screenshot that appears to show an Instagram story from the account tarantinouniverse. The image includes a poster for the documentary film "Zelensky," which focuses on the early life and rise of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and was screened at the opening of the Cannes Film Festival. The supposed story features a critical caption: "After watching the film 'Zelensky,' there is only one question left: who will give me back the time I spent?" Accompanying posts claim that Quentin…

Russia intensifies efforts to undermine Ukraine's mobilization campaign Russian media outlets, pro-Russian Ukrainian outlets, Kremlin-aligned Telegram channels, and bots on the social media platform X are spreading a photo purportedly taken at a Ukrainian university. The image shows a questionnaire asking students about their views on the "Contract 18-24" initiative, alongside a promotional leaflet for the program. According to these propaganda posts, Ukrainian universities are allegedly conducting covert campaigns to encourage students to join the Ukrainian Armed Forces. This claim is false. First, the photos are taken in such a way that their location cannot be identified, making it impossible…

Russia has ramped up its disinformation campaign targeting Ukraine's president On social media platforms like Telegram, Instagram, and YouTube, Russian bots are circulating a propaganda video that manipulates Volodymyr Zelensky's 2019 inauguration speech. The video portrays the devastating consequences of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine but falsely presents them as direct results of actions taken by the Ukrainian government. It features several false Russian narratives, including alleged oppression of Russian speakers, forced conscription, and exaggerated war casualties. The video concludes with a fabricated scene of President Zelensky allegedly fleeing the country with bags of money. This video is entirely fake…

What is wrong with a well-known photo depicting the 1944 deportation of the Crimean Tatars? If you search "deportation of Crimean Tatars” on Google, one of the top results is a photo widely believed to show the events of 1944. In reality, the image has nothing to do with the deportation of the Crimean Tatar people. Screenshot of a publication from the website vyshneve-rada.gov.ua Screenshot of a fresh publication from May 18, 2025 A reverse image search reveals over 400 uses of this photo — most often in publications about the Crimean Tatar genocide. It has appeared on little-known websites,…