Three years after the start of the Russia-Ukraine war, there is a possibility that it could end through negotiations. The first stage of talks took place on February 18 in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, between delegations from the United States and Russia. Ukraine was not invited to the meeting. President Zelenskyy said that he would agree to a meeting with Putin and a ceasefire agreement only if Ukraine receives security guarantees.
Russia invaded Ukraine at dawn on February 24, 2022. This was preceded by Vladimir Putin’s announcement on February 21, recognizing the independence of the so-called people’s republics of Donetsk and Luhansk. Putin labeled the invasion of Ukraine as a “special military operation,” claiming its goal was the demilitarization and denazification of Ukraine. According to him, the “special military operation” aimed to protect people who, for eight years, had been “subjected to humiliation and genocide by the Kyiv regime” (referring to the population in the separatist regions of Donbas and Luhansk).
Alongside its military intervention, Russia also conducted an information war, spreading numerous pieces of disinformation and manipulative narratives in favor of its interests. The war has now lasted for three years, but even before it began, Kremlin actors were promoting the idea that Russia would capture Kyiv within days:
Margarita Simonyan, April 21, 2021: “In an intense war, we will defeat Ukraine in two days.”
Vladimir Solovyov, February 22, 2022: “We will raise an eyebrow, and Ukraine will understand everything. We will take Kyiv.”
Alexander Lukashenko, February 5, 2022: “Ukraine will never fight against us because the war will last a maximum of three to four days!”
Below, we will review some of the most frequently spread disinformation narratives that have emerged over the three years since the start of the Russia-Ukraine war.
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This is Not a War, This is a Special Military Operation
Following the Kremlin’s narrative, Russian propaganda media cover the invasion of Ukraine by calling it a “special military operation.” Ukrainians are labeled as Banderites and neo-Nazis, while territories occupied by the Russian army are described as liberated territories. In the initial stage of the war, Russian media frequently aired comments in which civilians thanked Russian forces for their “liberation.” These types of comments were used by Russia to legitimize its invasion of Ukraine.
“We’ve been waiting for you for eight years. Why did it take so long? Why didn’t you come earlier?” – resident of Mariupol
Aside from Kremlin-controlled media, independent media outlets still existed in Russia as of February 2022, refusing to adopt the “special military operation” narrative. To suppress these voices, Putin actually criminalized independent journalism and, on March 5, 2022, signed a law that makes anyone who calls the “special military operation” a war face up to 15 years in prison. The dissemination of information contradicting the Russian government’s narrative has also been banned. For example, opposition leader Vladimir Kara-Murza was sentenced to 25 years in prison in April 2023 for criticizing the war and was accused of state treason. Kara-Murza was later released on August 1, 2024, as part of a prisoner exchange.
The enforcement of this law led to the closure of independent local media outlets as well as international media offices. Social media platforms (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube) were also banned.
Russia has been trying to keep its population inside the country in an information vacuum and to ensure that they receive news only from government-controlled Russian sources. Russian propaganda media continues to describe the occupation of territories as “liberation” to date. For example, a headline from RG.RU reads: Российские военные освободили село Ямполовка в ДНР – “Russian forces have liberated the village of Yampolovka in the Donetsk Republic” (February 18, 2025).
Notably, in addition to Kremlin-controlled media, Russia’s diplomatic corps is also actively involved in spreading disinformation.
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Nazi Ukrainians, Stepan Bandera, and the Azov Battalion
Since one of Putin’s main justifications for invading Ukraine was the so-called denazification of the country, Russian sources have spread various manipulations to support this narrative with “factual evidence.” For instance, a digitally altered version of a BBC report circulated, showing a Ukrainian soldier wearing a Nazi insignia. However, in the authentic version, the soldier actually wears the emblem of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Russian propaganda also falsely accused former Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Valerii Zaluzhnyi, of wearing a Nazi symbol. In reality, his bracelet featured a Scandinavian symbol, not a swastika. Additionally, disinformation circulated claiming that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s daughter, Oleksandra, had fled to Poland and called her father a Nazi and murderer of the Ukrainian people. Messages with this claim included a photo of a young woman crying in a car. However, the woman in the image was not Oleksandra Zelenska, and the shot was actually taken from a video published in 2017.
Russian TV channels frequently referred to the Azov Battalion as an extremist organization, often falsely accusing the fighters of this battalion of destroying civilian infrastructure in Mariupol and killing civilians.
The Azov Battalion was initially a volunteer ultranationalist group founded in 2014, which participated in the Donbas War. One of its founders is Andriy Biletsky, who left the battalion after Azov was integrated into Ukraine’s Armed Forces.
For years, the Kremlin has spread disinformation portraying the Azov Battalion as a Nazi unit.
As for Stepan Bandera, Russian propaganda labels him and his followers as Nazis. Kremlin actors claim that the ethnic cleansing in Ukraine in 1941 was carried out under Bandera’s orders. However, historical records show that during this period, Bandera was not even in Ukraine but was imprisoned in a German concentration camp. Nevertheless, Bandera is linked to the Ukrainian Insurgent Army, which was accused of ethnic cleansing, as many of its members came from Bandera’s Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists. In Ukraine, Bandera remains a controversial historical figure, with public opinion about him divided.
In general, Nazism and fascism have minimal support in Ukrainian society, and these ideologies are legally banned.
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Ukraine Was Created by Lenin
The claim that Russians and Ukrainians are one people and share a common statehood dating back to Kyivan Rus, and that their current conflict has been artificially provoked by the West, has been actively disseminated. In his speech on February 21, 2022, Putin also said that modern Ukraine was created by Russia, primarily by Lenin. To reinforce this narrative, various accounts circulated maps according to which early Ukraine had a rather small territory and got most of its land as a gift from the Russian Empire and later from the Soviet Union. In reality, Ukraine’s foundations as a state predate Russia’s existence, going back to Kyivan Rus. As for the claim that Lenin created Ukraine, it should be noted that prior to the formation of the Soviet Union, Ukraine had already gained its independence from the Russian Empire and owned most of its modern eastern territory (excluding Crimea), which Russia now claims as its own.
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Ukraine Fabricates Civilian Casualties – Russia Does Not Kill Civilians
At the early stage of the war, disinformation circulated suggesting that Ukraine was fabricating reports of civilian casualties and using actors to stage deaths. For example, a video of a mannequin was widely shared by Russian media, claiming that Ukrainian soldiers were preparing a staged provocation. In reality, the video was not from Ukraine but from the Russian town of Vsevolozhsk, filmed during the production of a television series unrelated to the Russia-Ukraine war. One post falsely claimed to have identified actors participating in these staged scenes. In reality, the circulated footage showed the filming of the series “Contamin,” shot in 2020, and it was not related to the Russia-Ukraine war. In another shared video, Russian sources used to claim that Ukrainians faked casualties from Russian airstrikes, depicting corpses wrapped in black cellophane. The video shows one of the supposed corpses smoking a cigarette. However, this footage was actually from a music video by Russian rapper Husky, released on YouTube in September 2020, that is, two years before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Numerous independent investigations confirm that in addition to military infrastructure, Russia has bombed civilian infrastructure and killed civilians. On April 2, 2022, after Ukrainian forces liberated Bucha, journalists entered the town and documented images of corpses strewn across the streets. Despite overwhelming evidence, Kremlin propaganda insists that Russian troops committed no war crimes in Bucha. The footage captured on-site by international media proves the opposite. For example, in the first report prepared by the BBC on April 2 about the situation in Bucha’s streets after the departure of Russian troops, bodies are clearly visible. The deceased individuals are wearing civilian clothing. On April 4, The New York Times published satellite images from Maxar Technologies. According to the UK Ministry of Defense, the satellite images of Yablunska Street from March 21 showed at least eight bodies lying in the street.
To deflect blame for civilian casualties, Kremlin propaganda has employed whataboutism, pushing the false narrative that Ukrainian forces themselves were killing civilians and that the real threat to Ukrainian citizens came from the Azov Battalion and other so-called “Nazi groups,” rather than from the Russian army.
- Zelenskyy Is A Drug Addict, a Western Money Squanderer, and an Illegitimate President
Kremlin media refer to Ukrainians as Banderites and neo-Nazis and conduct a particularly aggressive campaign to discredit President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Kremlin media portray him as a comedian, a drug addict, and a Western money squanderer. Since May 2024, he has also been labeled an illegitimate president.
Myth Detector has uncovered multiple instances of visual manipulation related to claims about Zelenskyy’s alleged drug addiction. For example, a manipulated version of Zelenskyy’s 2019 interview with Ukrainska Pravda was circulated, in which he spoke about his love for coffee and workout routine, stating that he does not use drugs. However, through word rearrangement, the video was edited in a way as if he said that he wakes up at 7 a.m., walks his dog, sniffs drugs and that this routine keeps him energized throughout the day, which he also recommends to others.
Another edited video, supposedly proving Zelenskyy’s drug addiction, was spread in March 2022. In the video, Zelenskyy is speaking with Elon Musk, while a white powder was digitally added to his desk, creating the false impression that he was using cocaine. In the authentic version of the video, there is nothing on the desk.
There were also claims that Zelenskyy had fled the country. However, on February 25, he recorded a video from central Kyiv alongside other leaders, stating that they were staying in the capital to defend the country until the end. Additionally, Russian media spread rumors that Zelenskyy had a body double. In reality, the person portrayed as his double is actually a member of his security team who is always by his side and does not even resemble him visually.
To discredit Zelenskyy, fabricated graffiti images have been repeatedly shared, allegedly taken in New York, Paris, Berlin, and other European capitals. These images portray Zelenskyy as constantly begging for aid, depicted as a black hole devouring Western funds. Additionally, fake covers of Western publications have also been spread to damage his reputation. Most often, the covers of satirical publications, such as Charlie Hebdo, were falsified in this process. The goal of this campaign is to portray Zelenskyy as a waster of Western money and Ukraine as weak while creating the impression among readers that even the West has started to recognize this and is mocking the Ukrainian president.
Russian propaganda employs various methods to depict Zelenskyy as a Western money squanderer. According to disinformation having circulated over the past three years, Zelenskyy’s family has acquired a number of expensive properties using Western funds. These include estates in the Caribbean, a vineyard in Italy, Highgrove House in Britain, the latest Bugatti model, Cartier jewelry, and more. Myth Detector, with its partner fact-checking organizations, has prepared two studies on this topic.
Starting in May 2024, campaigns against Zelenskyy also began to question his legitimacy. Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s five-year presidential term expired on May 20. According to the constitution, elections were supposed to be held in the last week of March – on March 31 – but were postponed due to martial law. Article 19 of the law on martial law states that, under martial law, it is prohibited to amend the constitution, hold presidential, parliamentary, Crimean Autonomous Republic, and local government elections; conduct referendums; or organize strikes, mass gatherings, and protests. Nevertheless, Russian media refers to him as an illegitimate president. Notably, a sociological survey conducted in February 2025 found that 63% of the population opposes any elections before the end of the war. According to data from the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology, 57% of Ukrainians trust Zelenskyy.
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“Dangerous Experiments” in US-Funded Biolabs in Ukraine
For years, Kremlin actors have propagated the claim that Pentagon-run military laboratories operate in Ukraine, conducting dangerous experiments. This narrative has intensified after the war began, with Russia using it as another justification for its invasion. The former head of the Chemical, Biological, and Nuclear Defense Troops of the Russian Armed Forces, Igor Kirillov, frequently disseminated allegations that Russian forces had uncovered secret documents during combat operations, supposedly proving dangerous research in these labs. For example, on January 30, 2023, during a briefing, Kirillov claimed that during the “special operation,” Russian soldiers had obtained over 20,000 documents allegedly confirming that the Pentagon was developing biological weapon components and testing them on populations in Ukraine and other states neighboring Russia. Notably, the documents that have been published so far consist of informational brochures and manuals from various research projects, which can easily be found on Google. None of these documents are classified or provide evidence that Ukrainian laboratories were developing biological weapons.
According to the Russian narrative, in military labs near Russia’s borders, Americans create pathogens and deadly diseases, which they then secretly test on post-Soviet populations. The narrative also claims that the US conducted “secret experiments” on Ukrainian soldiers, which could supposedly be used for military purposes under certain conditions.
In reality, since 2005, the US has assisted Ukrainian laboratories in strengthening their technical capabilities. However, this program does not involve military biological projects or experiments on soldiers. Under the 2005 agreement, Ukrainian laboratories across different regions underwent technical modernization to align with contemporary safety and research standards.
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Black Market Transplantology in Ukraine
In addition to allegations of “dangerous experiments” conducted in biolabs, Ukraine has also been accused of organ trafficking. According to a Russian propaganda source, organ trafficking in Ukraine has been taking place since 2014. The publication also claims that in 2022, former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, his wife Sandra Roelofs, and the Red Cross were involved in the trafficking of children’s organs in Mariupol. Claims of organ trafficking during military operations in Ukraine are part of Kremlin conspiracy theories that have circulated for many years now and lack any evidence. Organ transplantation is a highly complex and time-sensitive medical procedure that is impossible to perform in field conditions.
The claim about child organ trafficking has also appeared in Belarusian media. In a televised report, at the 2:53 mark, an interviewee identified by the subtitles as Vera Vayman, a supposed OSCE observer from 2019 to 2022, claimed that eight clinics in Ukraine were shut down, where the bodies of children with missing organs were discovered. However, fact-checking revealed that this respondent is not Vera Vayman but a Russian citizen, Vera Nikulina, from Vladivostok, who has ties with Putin’s political party, “United Russia.”
Ukraine’s First Lady, Olena Zelenska, and her foundation were also accused of involvement in child trafficking. However, these allegations were based on fake journalists and witnesses. In reality, the First Lady’s Foundation is a charitable organization that provides humanitarian aid to children and families affected by the war.
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Poland Wants to Reclaim Western Ukraine
Since the beginning of the war, various countries have provided Ukraine with both financial and military aid. Among them, Poland has been particularly vocal in its anti-Russian rhetoric, making it a prime target for discrediting campaigns. The Kremlin has attempted to spread the idea that Poland is using the war to further its own interests and that, in exchange for supporting Ukraine, it actually “demands” the return of Western Ukrainian territories that were once part of the Second Polish Republic. However, the Polish government has never made any territorial claims on Ukraine, and this narrative has been repeatedly debunked as disinformation by Polish officials.
Starting in March 2022, a map circulated on social media and in Kremlin-backed media, shows Ukraine divided between several countries – Poland, Russia, Romania, and Hungary. Russian sources claimed this map was aired on a Polish television channel, illustrating how Ukraine’s territory would be partitioned. However, fact-checking revealed that the map was from a Polish public broadcaster’s report, aired on March 24, 2014, which concerned a letter sent by Russian politician Vladimir Zhirinovsky to the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In the letter, Zhirinovsky proposed that Poland participate in Ukraine’s partition, and the map was merely used as a visual representation of his proposal.
To spread disinformation about Poland, pro-Russian sources frequently relied on pro-Russian Polish-language outlets, which were then cited by Russian media. The most commonly referenced were Niezależny Dziennik Polityczny and Myśl Polska. According to Polish media outlet OKO.press, the editor-in-chief of Niezależny Dziennik Polityczny, Adam Kamiński, does not exist. His profile photo on Facebook was actually a photo of a Lithuanian doctor. Another supposed editor, Wojciech Brożek, was also a troll, using a profile photo of an American economist. As for Myśl Polska, it is known for publishing pro-Russian and anti-Western content.
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Attempts to Discredit Ukrainian Migrants
After Ukrainian refugees sought shelter in various countries, the Kremlin launched a disinformation campaign to tarnish their image. Various articles have been published, and edited videos have been released to portray them as troublemakers. For instance, a report falsely attributed to Euronews claimed that a 26-year-old Ukrainian citizen, Valery Tarashchuk, who allegedly worked in a museum in Paris, was arrested for damaging a sculpture. In reality, the footage was edited and actually showed the arrest of an Azerbaijani man, Matlab Sultanov, in Russia. Similarly, a fabricated Deutsche Welle article was spread with the misleading headline, “Ukrainians in Germany started having children with Arabs and did not wait for their husbands to return from the front.”
During the first month of the war, an image circulating on the Russian media outlet Tsargrad accused Ukrainian migrants of theft. The photo showed a Polish-language banner reading, “Attention! All Ukrainian citizens will be inspected after the checkout,” which, according to Tsargrad, appeared after the war began. In fact, there was indeed a banner, but the photo is old, from 2017. The owner of the shopping center explained that he made the discriminatory banner impulsively after a Ukrainian customer was caught stealing two bags full of groceries. However, the wording should not have been so harsh. The banner was removed just one day later.
Another example of manipulation was a video filmed in Dresden, in which a protest rally against Ukrainian refugees staged by the Russian diaspora and pro-Kremlin bikers (“Night Wolves”) was falsely portrayed as an anti-immigration protest by German citizens.
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Ukraine Is Fighting Against Orthodoxy
Orthodoxy is a key pillar of the “Russian World.” Therefore, the Kremlin promotes the narrative that Ukraine is fighting against Orthodoxy and that the actions taken against the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP) aim to erase the Orthodox identity of the Ukrainian people.
In 2013, under the presidency of Viktor Yanukovych, the monastic complex of buildings of Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra was granted to the UOC-MP for free use. On January 5, 2023, Ukraine’s Ministry of Culture made a decision to return the Cathedral of Dormition and the Refectory Church of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra to state ownership. This decision followed searches conducted by Ukrainian authorities at churches affiliated with the Moscow Patriarchate across different regions of Ukraine. According to Ukraine’s Security Service, in November, counterintelligence operations were carried out in 350 churches, and 850 individuals were checked. The Security Service noted that the investigation uncovered evidence confirming the influence of the “Russian World,” including a case where a cleric provided information to the Russian side during wartime; propaganda literature and documents calling for Ukrainians to side with Russia; and large amounts of Russian money, Russian passports, and military rations intended for Russian soldiers.
After the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra was returned to state ownership, a conspiracy theory has circulated in Russian media claiming that the crosses on the church dome have turned black. This phenomenon was linked to divine punishment for the expulsion of priests under the Moscow Patriarchate and the subsequent services held by a priest from the Kyiv Patriarchate. Photos showing the darkened crosses were widely shared. However, the verification revealed that the blackening process began years ago because the crosses on the church dome are gilded, and the last restoration took place in the early 1970s.
Kremlin actors also linked the Ukrainian government’s alleged anti-religious actions to the appearance of a large number of crows in Kyiv. A video of birds was published in Russian propaganda media (NTV, RBC, Ria Novosti) along with a comment from Dmitry Polyanskiy, Russia’s deputy permanent representative to the UN. However, the video, which shows birds near vehicles, was actually filmed in Houston, USA, in 2017, not in Kyiv. As for the second video, it was indeed filmed in Kyiv, but it depicts a common natural phenomenon known as bird murmuration.
Visual manipulations were also spread, falsely claiming that after Zelenskyy expelled the UOC-MP, parties were being held in these churches. For example, a video allegedly showing a party in a church in Ukraine, specifically in the Vinnytsia Church of the Icon of the Mother of God, was actually filmed in Room 13, a club in Warsaw. Additionally, disinformation circulated suggesting that Ukrainians were burning Orthodox churches.
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Teenagers, Women, and the Elderly Are Being Drafted into the War
Russian sources have been spreading disinformation claiming that Ukraine is mobilizing teenagers, the elderly, and women. For example, on December 6, 2023, Dmitry Polyanskiy, acting Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the UN, stated during a UN Security Council session on the humanitarian situation in Ukraine that a Hitler Youth-like formation was being created in Ukraine. According to Polyanskiy, the first training for mobilized 17-year-old orphans was conducted at the reservist training center “Haidamatska Sich” (Гайдамацька Січ); they were allegedly meant to serve in the rear within the 103rd Territorial Defense Brigade in the Kharkiv region; however, the Ukrainian authorities deceived them, resulting in one of the underage orphans being killed on the front line on December 3; the information about that was shared on social media by the director of an orphanage. In reality, “Haidamatska Sich” has been operating since 2007 as a patriotic educational and training center, and the soldier killed on the front line, Volodymyr Sachala, was a 26-year-old serviceman.
Another piece of disinformation suggested that recruitment brochures for the elderly were being distributed in Ukraine. Ukraine’s Center for Countering Disinformation responded to this claim and debunked it.
In December 2024, a sexist banner was also published under the name of the organization “Ukrainian Women’s Guard,” urging Ukrainian women to register for a two-week military training course. The banner depicted a woman in military uniform, with a monkey sitting behind the wheel of a car in the background, accompanied by the caption reading, “Even a monkey can be taught to drive.” The head of the organization responded to the banner’s circulation, stating that the Ukrainian Women’s Guard had no connection to it.
As of today, mandatory military conscription in Ukraine applies to men aged 25 to 60. In April 2024, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a law lowering the conscription age from 27 to 25.
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Opposition Parties and Media Banned in Ukraine
To portray the Ukrainian government as undemocratic, claims have been spread that Ukraine has banned all opposition parties and media outlets. In reality, after Russia’s invasion, Ukraine did not suspend opposition parties in general but specifically halted the activities of 11 parties linked to Russia. This decision was made by Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council on March 18, 2022. As for the media, the activities of Russian and pro-Russian media outlets in Ukraine have been restricted to some extent since 2017. According to Iuliia Mendel, former spokesperson for President Zelenskyy, these channels became one of Russia’s weapons in its war against Ukraine, and their blocking was done in the interest of national security. According to Mendel, there is evidence showing that these TV channels were funded by Russia.
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A Significant Portion of Ukrainian Land Has Been Sold to Foreigners
For three years, Zelenskyy has been repeatedly accused of selling Ukrainian land to foreigners. Claims spread that philanthropist George Soros’ son, Alexander Soros, and the head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, Andriy Yermak, signed an agreement granting Alexander Soros 400 km² of land for free. A Russian media report, which featured a fake decree from Zelenskyy, alleged that the land would be used for disposing of hazardous waste from chemical, pharmaceutical, and oil refining plants.
Additionally, between 2022 and 2024, there were repeated claims that American companies had purchased 17 million hectares of Ukrainian agricultural land. This disinformation was used to reinforce the narrative that the U.S. is exploiting Ukraine and that foreign powers have taken control of the country, making decisions instead of the Ukrainian government. Another false claim suggested that the head of the American corporation BlackRock had banned the burial of deceased Ukrainian soldiers on land owned by the company. However, according to Ukrainian law, foreign citizens are not allowed to purchase land in Ukraine. Foreign companies can only buy non-agricultural land for real estate development related to their business activities in the country. Moreover, the claim about BlackRock’s CEO banning military burials in Ukraine is false and originated from a satirical Telegram channel.
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Foreign Pro-Russian Experts as a “Neutral” Side – Who Is Invited to Russian Media?
To present a “neutral position” to the audience, Russian channels have frequently invited or cited Western experts with pro-Russian views. The Kremlin uses foreign experts to legitimize its anti-Ukrainian and other propaganda narratives.
- Scott Ritter – One of the Western experts whom Kremlin propaganda has actively relied on since the beginning of Russia’s intervention in Ukraine.
Scott Ritter was a leading arms inspector for the United Nations from 1991 to 1998. After leaving his position, he became a strong critic of the U.S. government. He has been arrested several times and has served a sentence for pedophilia charges.
- Yakov Kedmi – Another foreign expert frequently cited by Russian media. From 1992 to 1999, he led the organization Nativ, which facilitated the repatriation of Jews from the Soviet Union. In its final years, the organization was embroiled in several corruption scandals, prompting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to dissolve it.
In his speeches, Kedmi justifies Russia’s actions in Syria, regularly criticizes Ukraine, and accuses it of antisemitism. He has also urged Russia to abandon its tolerant stance and actively confront Russophobia. In 2018, Kedmi called on Putin to start a war against the United States.
- Jeffrey Sachs – An American economist known for his pro-Russian and anti-Western statements. Sachs has frequently appeared on the show of Vladimir Solovyov, a Kremlin propagandist and vocal supporter of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He has also given several interviews to Russia’s Channel One.
- Tucker Carlson – A former Fox News host and the first Western journalist to interview Russian President Vladimir Putin after Russia’s full-scale military invasion of Ukraine. He is known for his loyalty to Russia and is frequently cited by Russian media. Carlson gained popularity through conspiracy theories, particularly regarding the COVID-19 pandemic. Notably, shortly after his dismissal from Fox News, Russia Today offered him a job.
- Patrick Lancaster – An American journalist and YouTuber who primarily covers the war in Ukraine and the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict in Karabakh. At various times he has worked for Thomson Reuters and Sky News, as well as the Russian state-owned media outlet Ruptly. Before becoming a journalist, he served in the U.S. Navy. According to Ukrainian media outlet Zaborona, Lancaster moved to Ukraine in 2014 after the Maidan Revolution and settled in Donetsk. Since then, he has frequently appeared in Kremlin propaganda media. He has also been exposed for distributing staged videos, which media outlets operating in Russia and Ukraine’s separatist regions used as “evidence” of alleged violence against civilians in Donbas.
- Larry Johnson – A former intelligence officer and expert on terrorism, national security, and foreign policy. He worked for the CIA for four years. Johnson is known for his critical stance on U.S. foreign policy decisions and intelligence practices. He frequently appears on Kremlin propagandist Vladimir Solovyov’s show and spreads pro-Russian and anti-Western narratives alongside other so-called “independent Western experts.” Johnson blames NATO and Ukraine for starting the Russia-Ukraine war and also absolves Russia of responsibility for the 2008 invasion of Georgia and the annexation of Georgian territories.
In 2022, Myth Detector published a report on Russia’s information warfare, analyzing disinformation and narratives disseminated on Russian, Belarusian, Ukrainian, and Georgian social media between February 24 and April 24 of that year.
