The logo of BBCthe graphics of BBCthe characters used by BBC. But the video was not published by the BBC. In recent days, a clip has been widely shared on social networks that former Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valery Zaluzhny, dismissed from office by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on February 8, received $53 million and the assignment of the role of Ukrainian ambassador to London in exchange for his renunciation of so-called presidential objectives. It is also claimed that Zaluzhny will leave the country following a deal revealed to Britain's national newspaper by Ukraine's presidential office. The investigative journalism group Bellingcat is also cited among the sources. In reality, the video is fake.
For those in a hurry:
- A video is circulating that former head of the Ukrainian Armed Forces Valery Zaluzhny received $53 million and the post of Ukrainian ambassador to London in exchange for giving up political power in Ukraine and his presidential ambitions.
- The news is false.
- The video was not published by BBCas the journalist denies BBC Shayan Sardarizadeh and the founder of Cat Belling – cited as source – Eliot Higgins.
Analyzes
Let's see a screenshot of one of the messages being checked. The description reads:
Former Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valeriy Zaluzhny received $53 million and the post of ambassador to London as payment for renouncing his claims to the post of President of Ukraine and any participation to politics. /BBC/ MONEY ONLY THE MONEY OF THE UKRAINIAN NATION AND CITIZENS NO ONE CARES
The video is fake. This is what the BBC journalist said Shayan Sardarizadeh and the founder and director of Bellingcat Eliot Higgins. Additionally, by browsing the social profiles of BBC, the video being verified in this article could not be found. Neither on Instagram, nor on TikTok, nor on Facebook.
Videos that discredit Ukraine's image by imitating the BBC's style are now trending. A consolidated practice implemented by Russian propagandists in order to pursue their own interests.
It should be noted that the style adopted in the fake video is now only used by a minimal percentage of the videos posted by BBC, which in most cases has a different graphic layout, with a different font and a semi-transparent red bar on the left. an example can be viewed here. Additionally, none of the videos recently released by BBC News use as much text as the fake one.
Conclusions
A video is circulating that former head of the Ukrainian Armed Forces Valery Zaluzhny received $53 million and the post of Ukrainian ambassador to London in exchange for giving up political power in Ukraine and his presidential ambitions. The news is false. The video was not published by BBCas the journalist denies BBC Shayan Sardarizadeh and the founder of Cat Belling – cited as source – Eliot Higgins.
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