Russian authorities themselves have propagated the idea that some of the worst atrocities — such as the massacre of civilians in Bucha not far from Kyiv in April 2022 — were staged.
“Ukraine: 157,000 soldiers dead,” says a February 5, 2023 tweet. “234 Dead – NATO military trainers (US and UK). 2,458 Dead – NATO soldiers (Germany, Poland, Lithuania,etc).”
The post was published here on October 14, 2022 by a Facebook page affiliated with a Thai right-wing group with more than 250,000 followers.
“Breaking news: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced a coup in Russia and said Putin has been placed under house arrest,” reads a simplified Chinese tweet posted on September 12.
The claim was shared on Facebook here on August 8, 2022.
“The video shows the Ukrainian army preparing a prop for a staged shooting,” reads a simplified Chinese post on April 7 on Weibo, China’s Twitter-like platform.
The video was shared here on Weibo on April 13, 2022. It has been viewed more than 119,000 times.
“There are rumours that Major General Roger L. Cloutier Jr, commander of the United States Army Africa (what is the commander of the United States Army Africa doing in Ukraine?) was captured in Mariupol, where he was helping to command Azov forces,” reads a Thai Facebook post shared on April 7.
The photo was shared here on Twitter on February 25, 2022.
“CNN posted saying its reporters were staying at this hotel that was mercilessly bombed by the Russian military,” reads a Korean-language Facebook post shared on March 22.