De-coding the myth of NATO expansionism
The Verdict False
This was based on a mistranslation. Ulf Kristersson said the opposite: that there was no reason for having nuclear weapons in Sweden in peacetime.
Category International community
Did Elon Musk Turn Off Starlink Access in Crimea To Disrupt Ukrainian Attack?
On Sept. 7, 2023, major U.S. news outlets, including CNN and The Washington Post, reported that SpaceX CEO Elon Musk had personally ordered access to the company's Starlink satellite internet service "turned off" or "shut down" in Russia-occupied Crimea to disrupt a planned Ukrainian military attack there. The incident took place in 2022.
These reports were based, in turn, on a published excerpt from a then-soon-to-be-released book about Musk by Walter Isaacson.
However, as Musk objected immediately and Isaacson would clarify soon after, the claim that Musk had ordered Starlink coverage in Crimea "turned off" wasn't entirely accurate. (Both CNN and The Washington Post subsequently corrected their reports.)
Photo manipulated to show Boris Johnson making Nazi salute
An image circulating online purports to show Boris Johnson raising his arm in a Nazi salute alongside three Ukrainians. But the photo is altered; in the original, the former United Kingdom prime minister is resting both hands by his sides.
The Top Myths about US Aid to Ukraine
As Congress debates additional support for Ukraine, the anti-Ukraine echo chamber will peddle myths and half-truths, including these four:
Myth: Washington is writing Kyiv “blank checks” that Americans cannot afford.
Myth: There is not enough oversight of US aid to Ukraine.
Myth: America is exponentially the largest donor to Ukraine.
Myth: Russia is a distraction. The US must focus on China.
Fact check: No evidence drone attack launched from Estonia or Latvia
A post shared on Facebook claims that a drone attack on a Russian airbase was launched from Estonia or Latvia.
Verdict: Misleading
There is no evidence that the attack was launched from Estonia or Latvia. Both countries denied the claim.
Russia’s Wagner mercenaries landing in Niger? No, ‘breaking news’ video shot in 2006 – Africa Check
Niger's coup leaders did reportedly ask Russia's Wagner mercenaries help them hold on to power. But a video circulating online with the claim it shows a planeload of Wagner soldiers landing in Niger in 2023 is 17 years old.
No, the US did not send Ukraine $6 billion by mistake
The U.S. did not accidentally send Ukraine $6 billion in military aid, as some online have alleged. This claim misinterprets a Pentagon announcement in June that the agency had overestimated the value of weapons it sent to Ukraine.
Was Russia ready to sign a peace treaty with Ukraine in 2022?
Putin's claims that a treaty was ready and acceptable for Ukraine in the spring of 2022 but was rejected by Ukraine are highly unlikely. The documents displayed at the June 17 meeting are likely to have been working drafts. The positions of the parties were too far apart, and Russia was not likely to abide by a ceasefire. A treaty would have to be signed by the presidents, and subject to a referendum in Ukraine.
Photo from Ukraine falsely shared as aftermath of Myanmar clash
As anti-junta forces reportedly captured a strategic military base in southern Myanmar, a photo surfaced in Burmese posts that falsely claimed it showed a foreign woman helping rebels loot pagodas in the battlefield. The picture was actually taken in a Ukrainian town damaged by heavy Russian attacks.
Fact check: ‘DW’ video on anti-Ukrainian sentiments is fake
An alleged DW video reports that refugees from Ukraine are being insulted with Wi-Fi network names in Poland. But it's a fake.