Category Misconceptions

New Russian nuke weapon dubbed Satan 2 cannot destroy ‘everything breathing in the world’

Russian state media says the missile can destroy an area the size of Texas or France, not the world. We could not find more objective reports detailing the same destructive power. "Individual warheads would strike distinct targets within a very limited ballistic 'footprint,' or many warheads from the same missile would strike the same target, increasing the likelihood of destroying that target completely," according to a 2021 report from EurAsian Times. The weapon is believed to be able to evade missile defense systems and its deployment is expected around 2022, said a March 1 Congressional Research Service report. We rate the claim that a Russian nuclear weapon dubbed Satan 2 is "capable of destroying everything breathing in the world" False.

March 1, 2022
Coordinated disinformation Disinformation Fact checks / debunkings Misconceptions Russia Russian propaganda

Ukraine: These videos do not show a Russian tank running over a civilian in Kyiv

On Twitter, videos from February 25 showing a military tank running over a car in the Obolon district of Ukraine's capital city Kyiv have garnered over ten million views. But contrary to what some users claim, this is not a Russian tank deliberately running over a civilian. There are many indications that the incident actually involved a Ukrainian tank.

February 28, 2022
Attacks on civilians Fact checks / debunkings Misconceptions Russia Ukraine

Fact check roundup: What’s true and what’s false about the Russian invasion of Ukraine

False and misleading information about the Russian invasion of Ukraine has spread rapidly on social media since Russian forces launched a military assault in the pre-dawn hours of Feb. 24. Here’s a roundup of claims related to the Ukraine-Russia conflict analyzed by the USA TODAY Fact Check team.

February 28, 2022
Antisemitism Biolabs Disinformation Fact check websites Fact checks / debunkings Germany Misconceptions Poland Resources Russia Ukraine USA

Is Russia using mobile crematoriums in Ukraine? – Truth or Fake

British website The Telegraph is reporting that Russia is using mobile crematoriums in Ukraine in bid to hide its losses. But the accompanying video footage of a crematorium actually dates from 2013. It was posted by a Russian incinerator construction company and is not footage from the ground. The use of mobile crematoriums by Russians during the current war in Ukraine is yet to be verified. We tell you more in this edition.

February 28, 2022
Disinformation Fact checks / debunkings Misconceptions Russia

Fact-checking claims that NATO, US broke agreement against alliance expanding eastward

No legal agreement prohibits NATO from expanding eastward. Russians have argued that comments made by U.S. and other Western leaders during the negotiations over the reunification of Germany constituted a promise that NATO would not extend beyond then-East Germany. Those allegations have sparked decades of debate amongst those involved in the events, and scholars studying them. Even scholars who say they believe western powers did offer the Soviet Union assurances about NATO expansion say Owens' claim is misleading. Our ruling Owens said, "NATO (under direction from the United States) is violating previous agreements and expanding eastward." There is an ongoing historical debate over comments that Western leaders, including Baker, made during post-Cold War negotiations, and whether what they said amounted to assurances that NATO would refrain from welcoming in countries closer to modern-day Russia. But NATO as an organization made no such pledge, and the formal agreement signed at the end of those negotiations said nothing about the alliance not expanding eastward. We rate this claim Mostly False.

Photo of children sending off Ukrainian troops is from 2016, not 2022

The viral image of children waving off troops dates back to 2016. It does not depict the current conflict between Ukraine and Russia. Our ruling Social media posts claim that a viral image, which shows two young children holding hands and saluting troops, was captured in Ukraine in 2022. But the photo traces back to 2016. We rate these posts False.

February 28, 2022
Children Fact checks / debunkings Media taken out of context Methods Misconceptions Protected groups & minorities Ukraine

5 fakes of the war in Ukraine

5 fakes of the war in Ukraine including: #1. "Celebrating the war". Video claims to show Russian soldiers dancing before heading to the frontline in Ukraine. In reality, dancing was in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. #2. "Russian jets launching attacks" - False. Video is from video game "Arma-3". #3. "Formation of jets over an urban areas" - Not from war in Ukraine. Video is from a 2020 Moscow air show. #4. "German news shows hundreds of Russian soldiers allegedly parachuting over the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv" - False. Old video from Russia (2016).

February 27, 2022
Disinformation Fact checks / debunkings Misconceptions Russia Ukraine

Vladimir Putin’s false war claims

Putin claims: “Does Ukraine need to be denazified” - false, “Is Russia’s attack a defense case under the UN Charter?” - false, “Was there a ‘genocide” in Ukraine?” - false. Russia has so far failed to provide any evidence in their claims.

February 25, 2022
Disinformation Fact checks / debunkings Genocide Misconceptions NATO Nazism Putin Russia Russian propaganda Ukraine United Nations

War in Ukraine: Disinformation about invasion abounds on social media – Truth or Fake

Many posts on social media claiming to pertain to the current conflict in Ukraine are in fact videos and photos of different events in other regions that happened several years ago. We tell you more in this edition of Truth or Fake.

February 25, 2022
Disinformation Fact checks / debunkings Misconceptions Russia Ukraine

There are no US-run biolabs in Ukraine, contrary to social media posts

There are no U.S.-run biological weapons labs operating in Ukraine. The U.S. Defense Department and the Ukraine Ministry of Health have had a partnership since 2005 to improve public health laboratories and prevent the threat of outbreaks of infectious diseases. That effort is part of the Cooperative Threat Reduction Program, which began in 1991 to reduce the threat of existing weapons of mass destruction programs in former Soviet Republics. Our ruling A social media user tweeted that Russia was targeting U.S.-run biolabs in its invasion of Ukraine. That account was soon suspended by Twitter. There are no U.S.-run biolabs in Ukraine. The country is one of many former Soviet Union republics, and other countries, partnering with the Defense Department as part of the Cooperative Threat Reduction Program. It's the latest claim in a series of disinformation efforts by the Russians, an expert told PolitiFact. While the U.S. may provide funding to upgrade or build labs in other countries, the labs are run by the partnering nations and the program's goal is to prevent biological threats, not create them. We rate this claim False.