Kremlin shows Yanukovych video, ISW reveals Putin’s propaganda tactic
Former President of Ukraine Viktor Yanukovych (Photo: Getty Images)
Russian authorities released a video featuring fugitive former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych. In it, he claims that he worked purposefully to bring Ukraine closer to the EU, but the Europeans behaved improperly, according to a report by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).
However, ISW analysts believe that the Kremlin likely timed Yanukovych’s statement to coincide with Russian President Vladimir Putin’s speech at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). In this way, the Russians aim to lend legitimacy to Putin’s demand for regime change in Ukraine.
In his video, Yanukovych stated that he allegedly worked to bring Ukraine closer to the EU and that his ultimate goal was Ukraine’s EU membership. However, the fugitive president blamed Ukraine’s EU partners for improper behavior during negotiations between Ukraine and the EU and criticized the EU for not understanding the difficulties of Ukraine’s economic situation.
The ISW notes that Yanukovych’s last public appearance in the media was in July 2022, when he urged Ukrainians to surrender to Russia. The exact date of this latest video statement is unknown. However, he began it by saying that Putin is absolutely right, likely in response to Putin’s remarks about Ukraine at the SCO summit. This suggests it was probably a pre-planned information campaign.
“The publication of Yanukovych's video on Russian state media was likely intentionally timed to coincide with Putin's remarks. The Kremlin may be setting conditions to claim that Yanukovych is the legitimate leader of Ukraine – not Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy,” ISW analysts believe.
However, such claims are false, as Yanukovych voluntarily fled Ukraine after the Revolution of Dignity, and Ukraine has since held several democratic elections.
Russia-Ukraine war
Russia began its war against Ukraine on February 19, 2014, while the full-scale invasion started on February 24, 2022.
Within the Council of Europe, a special tribunal will be established to hold senior Russian officials accountable for the crime of aggression against Ukraine.
Recently, Trump and Putin met at the Elmendorf-Richardson base near Anchorage, Alaska. Their meeting was shorter than planned: the formal luncheon was canceled, and no agreements were reached - neither on a ceasefire nor on peace.
At the same time, both parties described the negotiations as very productive. European leaders and experts have expressed doubts about Putin’s willingness to end the war.
The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) is an international intergovernmental organization established in 2001 in Shanghai. Its members include China, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Belarus, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.
It is expected that leaders of 20 countries will gather at the SCO summit in China, most of which are authoritarian regimes. The standard of living in these countries is often many times, and in some cases more than ten times, lower than in the G7 states. Among them, only India remains formally democratic.
