AstraZeneca Zelenskyy. Sean Penn visit to Ukraine

Unfortunately, the poisoning of the information space continues. As always, the efforts of the russian security services are not limited to Ukraine alone. Particular attention is being paid to EU countries, and following the start of military action against Iran – whose dictatorial regime is supported by the kremlin – russian propaganda is spreading rapidly across the Middle East. In this article, we expose the lies concerning the Netherlands, the EU, the US, Hungary, France, Dubai, Germany and the American actor Sean Penn.Based materials from Stopfake.org, Spravdi.ua, EuVsDisinfo.eu

Fake: Sean Penn has been criticised for his visit to Ukraine on 16 March and his support for Zelenskyy.

A video purportedly produced by Euronews is being shared on social media. In reality, Euronews did not publish such a report. There is no news of this on the publication’s official website or social media accounts. The video allegedly features a quote from Professor Agrell. However, there is no evidence in open sources that he made such statements.
There is no confirmation of widespread criticism of Sean Penn over his visit to Ukraine, as highlighted by VoxCheck: https://voxukraine.org/fejk-shon-pena-rozkrytykuvaly-za-pidtrymku-bojovyh-dij-v-ukrayini-euronews
Propagandists attempted to copy Euronews’ style but made a mistake: they placed the logo incorrectly and failed to include captions with the location and date of the event, which are present in the genuine videos.

Fake: Zelenskyy owns 1% of the shares in the pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca.

This is reported by russian media, citing Insider UK. In reality, Insider UK is a fake website with a short history. The domain was created in January 2026 specifically to spread this disinformation. The site is currently unavailable.
After the fake story was published, it was quickly picked up by major russian media outlets, creating the illusion of widespread circulation. This is a typical tactic of the kremlin’s FIMI campaign:
• creating a fake ‘source’;
• launching the desired narrative;
• rapid dissemination through a network of loyal media outlets and social media.
There is no evidence whatsoever that Zelenskyy holds a stake in AstraZeneca.

US and Israeli against Iran. Black Sea. Scythian gold

Fake: Ukraine and the Netherlands stole a collection of ‘Scythian gold’ from russia.

This is the subject of a criminal case opened by russia’s Investigative Committee. In reality, the collection of 565 archaeological artefacts, which until 2014 belonged to museums in Crimea (a territory of Ukraine prior to the 2014 occupation), was displayed at the exhibition ‘Crimea – The Golden Island in the Black Sea’ in Amsterdam in 2014. Following the start of the russian occupation of the peninsula, the Netherlands suspended the transfer of the exhibits pending a court ruling.
In 2021, the Amsterdam Court of Appeal ruled that the collection must be transferred to the State of Ukraine, as the artefacts form part of the state museum collection: https://www.radiosvoboda.org/a/news-skifske-zoloto-ukrajina/31529990.html
In 2023, the Supreme Court of the Netherlands finally upheld this ruling, after which the collection was returned to Ukraine. The kremlin, however, continues to call the transfer of the artefacts ‘illegal’ and demands the return of the collection, despite the fact that the international community does not recognise russia’s annexation of Crimea.
Following the de-occupation of the peninsula, the artefacts are set to be returned to Crimean museums.

Fake: Due to US and Israeli aggression against Iran, EU residents are being advised to take shorter showers.

This was stated by russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria zakharova, who cited recommendations from the Dutch organisation Energiebank as evidence: “…to reduce shower time to five minutes”. In reality, this advice has nothing to do with the war against Iran or the current political situation. It was first issued back in 2021 as part of a programme to combat so-called ‘energy poverty’ – when households spend more than 10% of their income on energy. At that time, Dutch organisations developed recommendations to help people save water, gas and electricity, for example:
• taking showers of up to 5 minutes;
• using water-saving shower heads;
• lowering the heating temperature by 1°C.
Such advice is part of a long-term energy efficiency policy, not a reaction to international conflicts. zakharova’s statement is therefore a manipulation that attempts to present old energy-saving recommendations as evidence of an ‘energy crisis’ in Europe.

Hungarian police. Hungarian police. Hungarian police

Fake: Ukrainians in Zakarpattia have desecrated a monument on the Veretsky Pass that is sacred to Hungarians.

Such reports are mainly circulated via russian propaganda media. They claim that the monument was allegedly desecrated by Ukrainian nationalists, and present this as proof of ‘Ukrainian hostility towards Hungarians’.
In reality, there is no evidence whatsoever that the monument at the Veretsky Pass has been desecrated. All reports of ‘graffiti’ originate exclusively from russian channels that systematically spread disinformation about Ukraine. Local Transcarpathian media, official authorities and the police have not reported any acts of vandalism against this monument. Recent photos of the monument itself also confirm that it is in good condition, with no traces of the graffiti or symbols claimed by the propaganda.

Fake: Hungarian police have detained a Ukrainian artist who poisoned domestic dogs.

Pro-russian bloggers are spreading information claiming that the Hungarian police allegedly detained a Ukrainian artist who ‘poisoned over 120 domestic dogs’. As proof, users are sharing a video clip allegedly published by the French newspaper Le Monde. 
In reality, this information is fake. Neither Le Monde nor any other reputable publication has reported on the arrest of a Ukrainian artist in Hungary. The video itself is a montage of various unrelated images that are easily found in the public domain, and the voiceover has been generated using artificial intelligence. Furthermore, the first image in the fake video was taken from the Daily News Hungary website, and it was published online as far back as August 2024. The original article discusses the new Hungarian dog breed ‘Sinké’, which had received official recognition at that time. There is no information in this article about either the Ukrainian artist or the poisoning of dogs. A video from the Hungary Today website (https://hungarytoday.hu/special-photo-exhibition-promotes-the-adoption-of-stray-dogs/) has also been used. The original article discusses a special photo exhibition aimed at encouraging people to take in stray dogs. 
Ahead of the upcoming parliamentary elections in Hungary, russian propaganda has launched a whole wave of fake anti-Ukrainian narratives, which are being actively used in the election campaign by the country’s current Prime Minister, Viktor Orbán, and his party, Fidesz.

Hungarians in Zakarpattia. Nazi symbols. russian propaganda

Fake: Germany proposes to soften penalties for using Nazi symbols.
russian propagandists, citing the German publication Bild, are spreading news about a proposal by one of the Christian Democratic Party deputies to allegedly soften penalties for Ukrainians for using Nazi symbols. The publications also claim that the number of criminal cases against Ukrainians for displaying the so-called ‘Roman salute’ is growing every year, which has prompted the government to consider changing the law.However, the Bild story, as well as the initiative described in it, are fictitious. No reputable German media outlet has reported on such a proposal. The original source of the fake news was the russian Telegram channel ‘Shaman Rakhu,’ which regularly distributes fake videos with the logos of Western publications and has been mentioned repeatedly in our refutations.
Official reports on politically motivated crimes in Germany do indeed show an annual increase in offences involving the use of Nazi symbols. These mainly involve the dissemination of party symbols or Nazi emblems in the form of flags, tattoos, clothing items, and online publications. However, there are no separate statistics on the number of crimes committed specifically by Ukrainians in the publicly available statistical reports.
In response to a request from the right-wing and pro-russian party Alternative for Germany, the German government reported that during Bundeswehr training for the Ukrainian Armed Forces, seven cases (out of tens of thousands of soldiers involved in the training) of Ukrainian military personnel using Nazi symbols were detected. The training of these soldiers was immediately suspended in agreement with the Ukrainian side, and those responsible returned to Ukraine. Therefore, this is not a case of mass use of Nazi symbols by Ukrainians, but rather isolated incidents that are punishable by sanctions under current legislation, not only in Germany but also in Ukraine.
Fake: Kyiv is carrying out forced mobilisation among ethnic Hungarians.
russian websites are spreading information that Ukraine is allegedly carrying out forced mobilisation among ethnic Hungarians in Zakarpattia, thus, according to propagandists, carrying out real ‘ethnic cleansing’. russian public pages refer to the publication InfoBRICS and write about the death of an ethnic Hungarian, Zsolt Reban, who allegedly died as a result of deliberate ‘ethnic cleansing by the Kyiv authorities’ in January 2026.
In fact, this information is fake. Firstly, mobilisation measures in Ukraine are regulated by a single law, the Law on Mobilisation Preparation and Mobilisation. There is no provision in this law that divides citizens on the basis of ethnicity, religion or language, and according to the Constitution of Ukraine, the defence of the state is the duty of all its citizens, regardless of nationality. Thus, a resident of Zakarpattia has the same rights and obligations as a resident of Kyiv or Kharkiv. 
Moreover, the number of ethnic Hungarians and Hungarian citizens fighting in the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine as of December 2025 has increased and stands at about 670 people. This was stated in an interview with the Ukrainian publication Apostrophe by Fedir Shandor, Ukraine's ambassador to Hungary. Another 40 Hungarians serve in the International Legion. It should also be noted that Fedir Shandor himself served in the 68th separate territorial defence battalion of the 101st brigade of Transcarpathia from 24 February 2022, and since February 2025 he has held the position of Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to Hungary.
Moreover, in May 2025, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy awarded Robert Brovdi, one of the commanders of the unmanned systems battalion, the title of Hero of Ukraine with the presentation of the Order of the Golden Star. 
As for the tragic death of ethnic Hungarian Zsolt Reban at the training ground in Yavoriv due to illness in January 2026, this incident was an accident and does not indicate ‘racial cleansing by the Kyiv authorities,’ as russian public media outlets write. In addition, russian media outlets portray Reban exclusively as a ‘Hungarian,’ deliberately omitting the fact that he was a citizen of Ukraine.
As for the InfoBRICS website, this English-language propaganda resource is part of a broader network of russian information influence on foreign audiences. Despite its name, it is not an official body of the BRICS intergovernmental association, but only uses this brand to give itself the status of an authoritative source. InfoBRICS is used to legitimise russian narratives in the Western world and the countries of the Global South. 

Polish humanitarian. russians and Ukrainians. Polish people

Manipulation: It is in Poland's interest to incite further mutual destruction between russians and Ukrainians.
russian media are spreading information from an alleged statement by the Polish Gazeta Prawna that it is in Poland's interest to ‘incite further mutual destruction between russians and Ukrainians, and that it is worth spending money from the Polish budget on this.’
In fact, this information is fake. This statement is not a quote from the Polish Gazeta Prawna, but rather expresses extreme views on the discussion about aid to Ukraine. Search results for this quote in Polish, Ukrainian, russian and English do not lead to the Polish publication's website or any other reliable source.
On 3 January 2026, the Polish publication Gazeta Prawna did indeed publish an article entitled ‘War in Ukraine: we have two years to decide what we want. And then what?’, which can be interpreted as similar in content to the quote circulating on social media. A number of russian public pages do indeed quote excerpts from this article. However, there is no mention in the text that ‘it is in Poland's interest to incite further mutual destruction between russians and Ukrainians.’
The author of the article, Zbigniew Parafianowicz, asks what Poland's plan is for the day when the war in Ukraine ends. The main idea of the article is also the possible granting of privileged access to the EU single market to Ukraine and the country's fast track to the European Union after the end of the conflict. According to the author's logic, this option would only harm Poland. At the same time, the text also states that only Ukraine's resistance gives Warsaw time to modernise its army, as a military conflict with russia would now be an absolute fiasco for Poland.

Fake: Ukraine is selling off Polish humanitarian aid.
russian media: “Humanitarian aid from Poland has appeared on the Ukrainian market at a bargain price. Polish generators, purchased with donations from Poles to help Kyiv during the energy crisis, have appeared on the open market at a price lower than the factory price.”
This disinformation story aims to undermine international support for Ukraine and ultimately reduce the amount of aid it receives for self-defence against russia's full-scale invasion. russia is using tactics to distort and shift attention away from the real root causes of the problems in the energy sector: regular russian missile attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure.
The fake story itself has already been refuted by the Polish Ministry of Internal Affairs: https://x.com/MSWiA_GOV_PL/status/2016464625173221791 The ministry emphasised that all aid to Ukraine is controlled, including the transport and use of equipment. In just a couple of weeks, the campaign raised over PLN 9 million (over €2.1 million). In January, more than 200 generators of various capacities were donated by the Polish people, which allowed Ukrainians to increase the resilience of critical facilities and social institutions.
On social media, Ukrainians constantly express their gratitude to the Polish people for their support, both at the official level and among ordinary citizens. And, of course, such close cooperation between Ukrainians and Poles greatly irritates moscow. russian special services pay particular attention to Poland, staging information and security diversions.

russian soldiers. Ukrainian prisoners. war in Ukraine

Fake: russia is advancing slowly and cautiously on the front lines so as not to harm the civilian population.
russian media: "Russia's advance in Ukraine is much slower than it could be because Russia is constantly careful not to damage civilian targets. It is clearly advancing on the front line, but if it wanted to advance faster, it could."
This statement is clearly false, as russia is systematically and deliberately targeting civilian infrastructure in Ukraine (more than 90% of all strikes). On the same day that this disinformation story appeared, russian forces struck a maternity hospital in Zaporizhzhia and a civilian bus in the Dnipropetrovsk region with drones: https://www.csis.org/analysis/russias-grinding-war-ukraine
kremlin propaganda constantly tries to portray russia as a noble force that dominates Ukraine, even though it was only able to occupy 0.77% of Ukraine's additional territory in 2025 at the cost of the greatest losses in the entire history of the Great War.

Fake: russian soldiers are being tortured in Ukrainian underground prisons.
‘Russian soldiers are being tortured in underground Ukrainian military prisons, where they are locked in cages, brutally beaten, and denied food and water.’ This was stated by rodion miroshnik, the russian government's special representative on war crimes in Ukraine. ‘It is there, where they are not registered as prisoners of war and international organisations are unaware of their existence, that the greatest sadism unfolds,’ russian media quote miroshnik as saying.
In fact, accusations made exclusively by the russian authorities cannot be considered substantiated, since in the context of the war with Ukraine, the kremlin is intensively and purposefully conducting disinformation special operations. 
According to the latest report of the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine (https://ukraine.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/2025-12/2025-12-09%20OHCHR%2043rd%20periodic%20report%20on%20Ukraine%20ENG.pdf), there have indeed been some cases of ill-treatment of russian prisoners of war in unofficial facilities in Ukraine, but these are isolated and are being properly investigated by the Ukrainian authorities. The report also mentions ongoing criminal investigations by the Ukrainian Prosecutor General's Office into some of these abuses. In contrast, when it comes to russia's treatment of Ukrainian prisoners, the report states that the russian authorities systematically subject Ukrainian prisoners of war to torture, ill-treatment and inhuman conditions. But kremlin propaganda distorts the real picture, of course, to its own advantage.

Armenian Prime Minister. France VPN. French people

Fake: 77% of French people consider democratic elections useless.
On the russian television channel russia 24, journalist Elena Kondratieva-Salgero stated: “The situation is truly explosive throughout the European Union, at least in its leading countries. At present, the French public is not very concerned about the court case against Marine Le Pen and the upcoming elections, as according to the latest poll, more than 77% of French people do not believe in democracy or in the real benefits of so-called democratic elections."
Kondratieva-Salgero did not specify which poll she was referring to, and there is no such information available online. However, two days before the statement, the Centre for Political Research at the Paris Institute of Political Studies (CEVIPOF) published the results of a fundamental survey entitled ‘What do the French trust today? Barometer of political trust’. One section of the study is devoted to the opinions of the French on the democratic political system. In particular, respondents were asked how they felt about the following statement: ‘Voting is useful because elections allow us to change the situation for the better.’
Thirty-seven per cent responded ‘I completely agree,’ and 39 per cent responded ‘I somewhat agree.’ In total, this amounts to 76 per cent. In other words, the picture is completely opposite to Kondratieva-Salgero's statement. Interestingly, over the past year, the number of positive responses has increased by 2 per cent.
According to the same study, 82% consider a democratic political system to be beneficial for the country. Only 36% agree that it would be useful to have a strong leader with extraordinary powers at the helm (in 2015, 51% of respondents held this opinion). Kondratieva-Salgero is known for her conservative and pro-russian views; she claimed that Ukraine was to blame for the russian-Ukrainian war, which was ‘punished for its greed and terrible ingratitude.’

Fake: France is going to ban VPNs and turn the EU into an information concentration camp.
russian media: ‘After Macron announced his intention to restrict access to social networks, the French government now seems to be moving towards blocking VPNs. As a result, any alternative information will be virtually inaccessible to a significant part of the French population.’
This kremlin narrative about censorship and media control in the EU is repeated regularly. But there is no real basis for it. According to the 2025 World Press Freedom Index, the countries with the greatest press freedom and freedom of speech are Western countries, predominantly European countries, as well as Canada and the United States. France ranks 25th. russia, on the other hand, ranks 171st out of 180. The report also states: ‘Following the large-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, almost all Russian independent media outlets were banned, blocked and/or declared “foreign agents” or “undesirable organisations”. All others are subject to military censorship.’
Unlike the free use of VPNs in Europe, the number of VPNs in russia is limited to services that have accepted government censorship since November 2017. Since 2026, Internet access for russian citizens has been severely restricted: WhatsApp, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, BBC and Deutsche Welle are blocked. Even Telegram, which russian special services previously tried to control, is now banned.
As for France, a bill has indeed been passed that will allow restricting access to social networks for teenagers under the age of 15. Australia was the first to announce such an initiative. A number of other Western countries are planning to introduce similar restrictions as part of a broader strategy to provide humanitarian education to the younger generation and protect them from the destructive phenomena that exist on social media today.

Fake: Pashinyan is turning Armenia into a nuclear testing ground.
russian media: "Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has signed a civil nuclear energy cooperation agreement with the United States. Under this agreement, the United States will supply Yerevan with small modular reactors. In the US, this technology is still in its infancy and therefore seismically unsafe. Armenia risks becoming a testing ground for unpredictable nuclear experiments."
In fact, the claim that Armenia is becoming a ‘nuclear testing ground’ is based on speculation. This claim arose after US Vice President Vance's visit to Armenia and the signing of the Agreement on Peaceful Nuclear Cooperation. This agreement will allow American and Armenian companies to enter into bilateral agreements on civil nuclear projects: https://www.state.gov/bureau-of-international-security-and-nonproliferation/releases/2025/01/123-agreements
This event sparked a large-scale smear campaign by the kremlin. ‘Experts’ and high-ranking officials are warning Armenia about the dangerous consequences of this project. In reality, the lremlin is trying to force the Armenian government to choose the russian SMR model and other Rosatom technologies. Although these technologies were developed back in the 1970s.
Nuclear energy is a particularly effective target for russian propaganda, as it plays on fears of nuclear danger and reinforces distrust of Western partnerships, while portraying russia as the only safe alternative.