murder of Charlie Kirk. russian fake. Azov Ukraine. United States news

Pro-russian media are spreading reports about an alleged ‘Ukrainian connection’ in the murder of popular conservative activist Charlie Kirk, committed on 10 September in the United States. Numerous publications claim that Tyler Robinson's uncle, who is suspected of murdering the politician, allegedly collaborated with ‘Ukrainian Nazis.’

As ‘evidence,’ propagandists are spreading a post by Mike Robinson on the social network LinkedIn, where he allegedly sought contact with the Ukrainian special forces brigade ‘Azov.’
‘Let us remind you that Ryan Root, who tried to kill Trump last year, also actively supported Ukraine and sought recruits for the Ukrainian army,’ russian propagandists also claim in their publications (this story is also a manipulation, as Ryan Root had a rather controversial reputation and was in contact not only with Ukrainians, but also had extensive connections around the world).
Reference: The Azov special forces brigade, part of the Ukrainian National Guard, is not a Nazi formation; this is an old fake story spread by the Kremlin's special services.
In fact, this information is untrue and appears to be part of a coordinated information attack against Ukraine. Mike Robinson, who is mentioned in the pro-russian media, is not the uncle of the accused and has no connection to the training of Ukrainian military personnel. His publications concerned only the exchange of experience and discussions, not military training. Mike Robinson himself reported this on his LinkedIn page: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7374061300836052992/
‘They accused me of training snipers in Ukraine. This is not only a deliberate lie aimed at damaging my reputation, but also an attempt to endanger my life and the lives of my family,’ Mike Robinson said. He also emphasised that he has no connection whatsoever with the Ukrainian army. Robinson is a former officer of a US special forces unit fighting terrorism and has never been involved in training snipers, including Ukrainian ones.
Mike Robinson's profile states that he was the director of the volunteer organisation Radio Free Ukraine, which provided information about the war in Ukraine and humanitarian projects to support civilians affected by russian aggression. He currently works in marketing and advertising at LaVERDAD.
The accusations of his ‘collaboration with Ukrainian Nazis’ or ‘training snipers’ are absurd. StopFake reviewed Robinson's publication, which propagandists are spreading as ‘evidence.’ In fact, he wrote about his willingness to welcome a veteran or wounded soldier from the Azov Brigade to discuss their experiences and tactics in discussions and presentations. In the comments, Robinson clarified that this was specifically about sharing knowledge and experience, not military training.
It is worth noting that the murder of Charlie Kirk has been widely covered by the world media. No reputable publication reports any connection between the accused Tyler Robinson or his family and Ukraine. US Vice President Jay D. Vance blamed the tragedy on a ‘destructive movement of left-wing extremism.’ President Donald Trump also stated the need to ban Antifa (a movement that opposes fascism, racism, far-right movements and neo-Nazis – ed.), which he intends to recognise as a terrorist organisation.
The claim about a “Ukrainian trace” in Kirk’s murder has all the hallmarks of a planned disinformation campaign. StopFake found that this narrative was first published on X by a user under the nickname @FrauHodl on 14 September, after which it was actively picked up by anonymous pro-russian accounts on X and Telegram.
Such fakes are spread in order to use a high-profile crime that has caused widespread public outrage in the US as a tool to attack Ukraine (or any other opponent of the kremlin). russian propaganda seeks to convince the American audience that Ukraine is allegedly involved in tragic events within the country. This makes it possible to simultaneously discredit Ukrainian resistance, weaken the support of allies, and increase the polarisation of American society.
At the same time, the russians are promoting a fake story that ‘Ukrainians on TikTok are rejoicing over the murder of Charlie Kirk.’ In doing so, kremlin propagandists refer to a story from the charity platform United24. In reality, United24 did not publish such a video, either on social media or on its website. Moreover, United24 is not a ‘yellow media’ outlet, but a charitable platform that encourages more foreigners to support Ukraine, and material with such content clearly does not correspond to the project's concept.
We were also unable to find any evidence on TikTok of such a “trend” spreading among Ukrainian users. Most of the information about Kirk’s murder that was shared in Ukrainian was neutral.
Charlie Kirk has indeed repeatedly expressed anti-Ukrainian views. He condemned military aid to Kyiv and called Ukraine a territory that ‘has always been part of russia.’ The activist also accused President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of disrupting possible peace agreements and even called him a ‘puppet of the special services.’ Therefore, Ukrainians are unlikely to mourn Kirk's departure, but official Kyiv has openly condemned the crime against the American politician. As for Ukrainian society, it has more important issues and tasks: protection from russia's barbaric aggression. Every day. Every minute.
Based on materials from Stopfake.org