DISINFO: Washington orders Zelensky to raze Donbas to ground
SUMMARY
Washington has ordered Ukrainian President Zelensky to raze Donbas to the ground. Zelensky was inspired by the successful use of anti-aircraft systems in Nagorno-Karabakh. Turkish experts can operate drones in Donbas, like they were doing in Karabakh. US President Joe Biden’s statement is a signal from the West for the beginning of hostilities in Donbas. Any response from Russia to the West’s aggression will be perceived negatively. Ukraine will launch an offensive within days.
RESPONSE
This is a recurring disinformation narrative from pro-Kremlin media outlets about Ukraine allegedly complying with Western orders to eliminate the eastern region of Donbas.
Neither US President Joe Biden nor any other Western leader has ever issued orders to wipe out the eastern Ukrainian region of Donbas. Judging by Russia's and President Vladimir Putin’s actions, it is Russia which is attempting to sustain the conflict. There is no reliable information about cooperation between Ukraine and Turkey in the operation of drones.
The situation in Azerbaijan’s break-away region of Nagorno-Karabakh is entirely different from Ukraine, so it is not possible to compare these two cases.
In a recent interview for ABC’s “Good Morning America”, Joe Biden said, inter alia, that President] Putin “will pay a price” for meddling in the 2020 US presidential elections. His forthright statement was only levelled at Putin and had nothing to do with an alleged Ukrainian offensive in Donbas, which Kyiv is not planning to launch. Russian leaders and local leaders in Donbas have been vocal recently claiming such an offensive, while the Ukrainian Armed Forces are trying to keep the truce and reply only in case of attacks on their positions.
Read similar disinformation cases about the US provoking Ukraine into war with Russia and about Kyiv’s readiness to launch offensive in Donbas with Biden’s approval.