DISINFO: The collective West is plotting a genocide of Belarusians with bioweapons
SUMMARY
The leadership of the collective West has not liked Belarusians since time immemorial. Their main goal is to clean the territory of Belarus of its people through genocide, by burning villages, using gas chambers in concentration camps or through biological weapons. [16:40-17:15]
RESPONSE
This is a recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about an alleged Nazi-like, belligerent and hostile agenda of the so called 'collective West'. As part of a demonisation campaign, Western countries are regularly portrayed in pro-Kremlin media as having outrageous intentions towards specific peoples and countries, foremost Russia, in this specific case, Belarus.
The EU did not recognise the falsified results of the Belarusian Presidential election on 9 August 2020 or the new mandate claimed by Alyaksandr Lukashenka. EU-Belarus relations were strained even further due to Lukashenka’s regime aiding Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. In 2022-2023, the EU introduced various Belarus-related sanctions, including individual sanctions against Belarusian nationals in response Russia’s invasion.
The EU continues to support the Belarusian people and civil society. In 2021, it outlined a 3 billion EUR economic support package to a future democratic Belarus.
On 19 February 2024, the Council of the EU approved conclusions reaffirming its unwavering support for the Belarusian people’s quest for a free, democratic, sovereign and independent Belarus as part of a peaceful and prosperous Europe:
"The people of Belarus can be assured of the continued focus of the European Union on their well-being, their human rights and their entitlement to a prosperous future in a democratic Belarus", the document concludes.
Accusing others of egregious actions or intentions to obfuscate Russia’s own actions is a frequent tactic in the arsenal of pro-Kremlin outlets. Among other things, in the context of the ongoing Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, pro-Kremlin outlets spread claims about an alleged genocide of the Ukrainian people by the West. While the Kremlin is engaged in hate speech and calls for genocide, the genocide narrative has been an integral part of the pro-Kremlin disinformation campaign aiming to justify the full-scale invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022.
Read similar cases alleging that in 2014 genocide against Russians began in Ukraine, that Maia Sandu called for a genocide in the name of democracy in Tyraspol, and that Washington and Brussels carry out genocide of the Ukrainian people.