Historians cite upwards of a dozen examples dating back to the 1500s in which Russia or the Soviet Union attacked another country without being militarily attacked first. • Russia may offer various justifications for why it attacked another country in these instances, but each of these examples involved militarily unprovoked actions by Russia or the Soviet Union. Our ruling Peskov said, “Russia has never attacked anyone throughout its history.” Historians cite upwards of a dozen examples dating back to the 1500s in which Russia or the Soviet Union attacked another country without being militarily attacked first. Russia may offer various justifications for why it attacked another country in these instances, but contrary to Peskov’s statement, each of these examples did involve militarily unprovoked actions by Russia or the Soviet Union. We rate the statement Pants on Fire.

Ohio Senate candidate J.D. Vance said the State Department’s focus on transgender rights is inflaming the conflict with Russia in Ukraine. Russia has placed as many as 150,000 troops near Ukraine’s borders. Russia has said Ukraine’s ties to NATO are a key threat to Russia’s national security. Our ruling Vance said that Biden risks war with Russia because Putin doesn’t “believe in transgender rights.” There is a risk of war, but it is because of Russia’s focus on Ukraine’s ties to the west and the buildup of Russian forces along Ukraine’s border. The State Department noted the threats against transgender people as one issue among many in a report on human rights. It gave much more space to the danger posed by Russia’s military policies in its most recent annual threat assessment. The risk of war in Ukraine is not affected by Putin’s attitude toward transgender rights. We rate this claim Pants on Fire. Update: This story has been updated to include a response we received from the Vance campaign shortly after initial publication.

Vladimir Putin’s online followers love sharing videos or photos of the Russian president that play up his strongman image. But sometimes in doing so, they share fake and manipulated videos – which then go viral. The Truth or Fake team take a look at two examples.