DISINFO: Volodymyr Zelenskyy is a Western puppet
SUMMARY
Russia is ready to talk to the West. Negotiations on the settlement of the conflict do not only concern Ukraine. The negotiations to resolve the current crisis are not only about Ukraine, they will take place sooner or later, but not with Volodymyr Zelenskyy - he is a Western puppet - but with his masters.
RESPONSE
Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narratives about Ukraine's and Europe’s alleged loss of sovereignty, part of a wider disinformation campaign to justify Russia’s unprovoked invasion.
By calling Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy -a frequent target of pro-Kremlin disinformation- “a puppet”, this disinformation story aims to portray Ukraine’s self-defence against Russia’s aggression and the international efforts to back Kyiv as serving only US interests. The ultimate goal is to undermine popular support for this aid while denying any legitimacy for Ukraine’s leadership and statehood.
See other examples of similar disinformation narratives in our database, such as claims that Zelenskyy’s visit to Washington shows that Ukraine will be a neo-colony of the US, that Ukraine lost its independence and is under external control, that the West has made Ukraine its colony and is using Ukrainians as cannon fodder, or that Zelenskyy may use a dirty bomb if the US asks him to do so.