Russian Rhetoric Ahead of Attack Against Ukraine: Deny, Deflect, Mislead
As Russia amassed troops on the Ukrainian border, Russian President Vladimir Putin, his spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, and other Russian officials repeatedly denied that their country had plans to invade Ukraine. They blamed the U.S., Ukraine and others for the tension, insisting that Russia is a “peaceful country” and that it is “not going to attack anyone.”
That, of course, was proven false when Russia launched a full-scale invasion against Ukraine on Feb. 24 — two days after Russian tanks rolled into eastern Ukraine on a “peace-keeping” mission. “This is a terrible day for Ukraine and a dark day for Europe,” German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said in a Feb. 24 tweet.
Here we round up some of the statements Putin, Peskov and others made during a monthslong misinformation campaign leading up to Russia’s planned invasion of Ukraine.
2021
– Peskov described media reports of Moscow’s plans to invade Ukraine as a “hollow and unfounded attempt to incite tensions.” “Russia doesn’t threaten anyone. The movement of troops on our territory shouldn’t be a cause in a conference call with reporters.
