Fake: In Ukraine, 15 million people maintain strong ties with Russia
Such reports are being circulated by Russian propaganda media referring to their defense ministry. The claim is that the majority of Ukrainians have always been in favor of friendly relations with Russia, while nearly 15 million “still maintain strong ties with Russia.”
The statement also lists the regions of Ukraine where people allegedly seek friendship with and help from Russia the most. This fake spin is designed for domestic consumers only. Even if we assume that the number of people with Russian roots now living in Ukraine remains significant, the ties with their relatives living in Russia have drastically deteriorated or been severed with the outbreak of war and the fact that the Russian populations remains oblivious to the obvious truth, having been drugged and by Kremlin propaganda and lies. In addition, the Russian defense ministry, which is not just an engine of aggression, but also the main supplier of fake stories fed to its citizens, fails to report the source from which such conclusions are drawn. Apparently, the report is based on the Russian government’s wishful thinking. According to Ukrainian national polls, the majority of respondents believe that the objective of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is total annihilation of the Ukrainian nationa. The claim that during the period of war the Ukrainians allegedly more often seek a safe haven in Russia rather than in the territory of Ukraine’s western neighbors finds no confirmation either. According to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), as of March 14, 2022, about 3 million people fled Ukraine, of which 60.7% crossed into Poland. The flow of refugees to Russia stood at 142,990 (5% of the total number), and to Belarus it was a mere 1,230.