Category International community

False subtitles added to video suggest Polish president ‘mobilises troops to enter Ukraine’

Multiple social media posts in China have shared a video alongside a claim it shows the Polish president declaring military mobilisation in support of Ukraine. Although Poland sent weapons aid to Ukraine after Russia's invasion, misleading Chinese-language subtitles have been added to the clip to suggest it was sending troops to war. The Polish defence ministry dismissed the claim. As of May 26, AFP found no official reports that Poland was sending troops to Ukraine.

FACT CHECK: Did CNN Report That A Man Named ‘Bernie Gores’ Was Killed In The Uvalde, Texas School Shooting? | Check Your Fact

Verdict: False
A CNN spokesperson denied the outlet published such an article. The man pictured has been falsely linked to similar tragedies in the past.

FACT CHECK: Did Volodymyr Zelenskyy Buy This Florida Residence For $35 Million? | Check Your Fact

Verdict: False
There is no evidence that Zelenskyy has purchased the property. The house is still listed for sale online.

Picture does not show decorated officer among Russian prisoners

Social media users shared a photo claiming to show that a senior US military commander was among captives when Ukrainian soldiers defending the Azovstal steelworks in Mariupol surrendered to Russian troops in May. But the claim is false; retired Admiral Eric Olson confirmed to AFP that he was not in Ukraine, and the photo appeared in Russian media a month before the surrender.

Photo shows Moscow’s first McDonald’s restaurant opening in 1990, not chain’s closure in Russia

A photo has been shared hundreds of times in social media posts that claim it shows Russians queuing to purchase their final meal at a McDonald's restaurant before the American fast-food giant closed all outlets in Russia following the invasion of Ukraine. Although local media reported that Russians flocked to McDonald's restaurants after the closure was announced, the photo has been shared in a false context. It was taken by an AFP photographer in January 1990 at the opening of the first McDonald's restaurant in the Soviet Union.

Fake: Erdogan Says Turkey Unwilling to Get Involved in “Ukraine show”

Russian media distorted the "quote" attributed to the Turkish president, and the words about the "show" were taken out of context. President Erdogan has consistently said that Turkey opposes encroachments on the territorial integrity of Ukraine and is trying to do everything to bring the parties to a peace agreement.

May 25, 2022
Fact checks / debunkings International community Russia Turkey Ukraine

Does JD Vance profit from Russia propaganda?

J.D. Vance personally invested as much as $300,000 in the video sharing platform Rumble, although the precise details remain private.

RT, a Russia state-sponsored service that amplifies Kremlin messaging, posts its videos and livestreams on Rumble.

RT generates millions of views on Rumble, which increases the platform's value to advertisers.

Our ruling
Ryan said, "Vance profits off Russia propaganda."

Ryan's claim is based on Vance's investment in Rumble, the platform where RT posts its videos.

RT amplifies Kremlin messaging, and in the past two and a half months, RT has produced nearly 2 million views on Rumble. More views mean more advertising revenues for Rumble, and RT's presence adds value to Vance's investment.

But other programs on Rumble attract many more viewers, and the details on Vance's investment in the company are not public. Rumble's CEO earlier this year said the company has yet to turn a profit.

With that caveat in mind, we rate this claim Half True.

May 24, 2022
Fact checks / debunkings International community Misconceptions Russia Russian propaganda USA

This clip does not show Russian missiles in Ukraine — it was taken from a video game

A video has been viewed thousands of times in multiple Facebook and Weibo posts alongside a claim it shows Russian troops blowing up a military convoy carrying US-supplied weapons to Ukraine. However, the claim is false; the clip in fact shows computer-generated imagery from a war video game called ARMA 3.

Fake: Trying to Burn Russian Flag, Ukrainian Refugees Burn Down German House

A story making the rounds online about Ukrainian refugees is false and is intentionally stylized as a Bild news story. In fact, the video is a collage of several videos from previous years.

Old footage shows soldiers of the French Foreign Legion, not Russian troops in Ukraine

A video viewed more than 300,000 times on Facebook has been shared alongside claims that it shows Russian and Ukrainian soldiers fighting in February 2022. This is false; the video, which has been online since at least 2019, shows troops of the French Foreign Legion in battle, although it remains unclear where the footage was filmed.

May 20, 2022
Fact checks / debunkings France International community Media taken out of context Methods Misconceptions Russia Ukraine