The material describes specific Russian disinformation messages that have occurred in the Georgian infosphere:
1)
A photo with the following caption is circulating on social media: ‘Advertising banner in Poland; defend Poland.’ In the photo, we can see the former commander of the so-called “Wagner Group”, Yevgeny Prigozhin. As a result of the information on the poster, one gets the impression that the Polish Ministry of Defence is warning citizens of possible danger from the Wagner Group.
The banner, however, is actually fake. Similar disinformation – with an identical picture – was also spread on Russian Telegram channels, where it was claimed that the Polish Ministry of Defence had launched an advertising campaign for contract service in the Polish army.
The Defence Ministry has officially confirmed that the said poster is fake. Moreover, according to the Ministry of Defence press service, none of the departments responsible for recruiting candidates for the Polish army is the creator of the mentioned poster.
The Ministry of Defence said their logo was “illegally used or forged”. They also noted that the Polish Ministry of Defence is running campaigns encouraging Polish citizens to volunteer to join the Polish Army.
2)
On May 16, 2023, Russian propaganda media published an article claiming that radiation levels in Poland had increased due to an explosion in the Khmelnytsky region caused by a Russian missile attack.
Other Russian-language media outlets also published similar information, including osnmedia.ru, news22.ru, adi19.ru, news.ru, dzen.ru and riamo.ru.
According to the articles, on May 15, radiation measuring devices in the Polish city of Lublin recorded a sharp increase of about 6-7 times in radiation levels. The articles cite the Telegram channel of Yakov Kedmi, a Kremlin propagandist, claiming that the Polish public believes the radiation threat comes from Ukraine and the Khmelnytskyi region.
Linking the increase in radiation levels in Poland to the Khmelnytsky explosion is manipulation. According to the State Atomic Agency, the short-term increase in bismuth levels is due to natural conditions, and radiation levels are within normal limits.
The State Atomic Energy Agency, in a statement published on May 17, 2023, dismissed the information being disseminated and said that radiation levels in the country are within normal limits. As reported in the statement, the incident was explained by natural factors, and radiation levels do not threaten human health, life or the environment.
3)
According to one post on the social media service: “Poland has decided to enter western Ukraine. I think the Russian flag will flutter in Poland and western Ukraine”.
The Kremlin’s propaganda has systematically spread this narrative since the invasion of Ukraine. No state other than the Russian Federation has attempted to violate Ukraine’s territorial integrity. Since Russia started the war, there is no evidence that Poland has ever planned or is planning an invasion of western Ukraine. Moreover, in this war, Poland is one of Ukraine’s main allies, continuing to provide military, financial, humanitarian and diplomatic support to Kyiv. The Polish President, as well as other Polish officials, have continually stressed the importance of Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. “The free, independent and sovereign Ukraine will exist in friendship with the free, sovereign and independent Poland – for the sake of the happiness and mutual cooperation of our states and people”, said Polish President Andrzej Duda during his speech at the Council of Ukraine.
It is worth recalling the disinformation activities of May 2022, when a fake order appeared on Twitter ordering the Polish Armed Forces to prepare to enter western Ukraine. In response to the post, an official statement from the Armed Forces General Command said: “The whole document is fake! We are seeing more and more of these fake military documents in the Polish mass media. Please do not share fake news”. The same allegation was answered by Secretary of State of the Chancellery of the Prime Minister, Deputy Minister Coordinator of Special Services, Stanisław Żaryn, according to whom Russia is continuing its information operation against Poland and spreading false information as if Poland intends to annex western Ukraine.
Claims that Poland intends to occupy part of Ukraine’s territory are heard not only in the Russian media and on the internet, but also from high-level officials. Similar statements were made, for example, by Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoygu, Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev, Intelligence Chief Sergei Naryshkin, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov and Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova. Russian Federation President Vladimir Putin himself stated on November 4, 2022, during a meeting with historians, that “the idea of occupation of Ukraine still exists in Poland”.
The Kremlin’s goal in actively spreading this narrative is to challenge the legitimacy of Ukrainian statehood, destroy Polish-Ukrainian relations and justify its own imperialist aspirations by portraying Poland as a state with expansive ambitions. On the one hand, the aforementioned disinformation supports Moscow’s narrative that Ukraine is a state artificially created by Vladimir Lenin so that it can be just as artificially disintegrated and divided by its neighbours. On the other hand, the narrative that Poland plans to occupy western Ukraine justifies and legitimises Russia’s occupation of Ukrainian territories because, according to Russia, if another European country can occupy Ukrainian territory, so can Russia. Finally, since part of the sovereign territories of modern Ukraine actually once belonged to Poland, this disinformation is aimed at straining relations between Ukraine and Poland, stirring up territorial disputes and feuds so that Ukraine, facing war with Russia, will lose one of its most important supporters.
4)
The pro-Russian online news agency Georgia and World has spread another fake news story about Poland.
Translation of the material:
One of France’s largest television channels, LCI, reported that Poland and the Baltic states are considering sending troops to Ukrainian territory – Telegram’s InfoDefense channel reports.
LCI is one of the most popular and, at the same time, Russophobic TV channels in France. Millions of French people watch it every day.
According to the French, Poland and the Baltic states are seriously considering introducing troops into Ukrainian territory. Anonymous sources of French experts in the Polish government say that the Poles are now waiting for the final results of the Ukrainian counterattack and offensive actions by Russian troops. If it becomes clear that Russia is winning the war in Ukraine, the Poles may send a division this year that will include Poles, Baltic states, some Ukrainians and perhaps some more Europeans.
The French also say that, according to the Poles, the war in Ukraine is an existential war for Poland. “Poles believe that if the Russians are not stopped in Ukraine, they will enter the Baltic states, Poland, Moldova and Georgia next”.
Author: dr Grigol Julukhidze
Public task financed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Poland within thegrant comp etition “Public Diplomacy 2023”
