Since April 4, 2023, Georgian- (1,2) and Russian-language (1,2,3,4,5,6,7) Facebook profiles, as well as the Russian page, have been spreading a photo of a poster on the wall depicting an African-American man sleeping on a chair. The poster features an inscription in English, which calls on Americans living on social benefits to join the “International Legion” to protect Ukraine and promises international volunteer status, medical insurance and a monthly salary in return. The poster also shows a contact phone number. Selected accounts claimed that the poster was placed in the New York subway.
The claim that posters have appeared in the New York subways urging Americans living on social benefits to join the “International Legion” is false. Neither Ukrainian nor any other embassy has distributed posters for this purpose.
“Myth Detector” contacted the Embassy of Ukraine in the United States of America. According to the representative of the communications service of the embassy, the said posters are fake, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, the Ministry of Defense or the Embassy of Ukraine in the US did not create similar or any other type of material for the purpose of recruiting American citizens to the “International Legion.”
The “Center for Combatting Disinformation” of Ukraine also verified the disseminated information and found that no similar advertisement was placed in the New York subway. According to the center, dissemination of such information serves to discredit the Ukrainian army and government.
“International Legion of Defence of Ukraine” was established on February 24, 2022, by the decree of the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, after the invasion of Ukraine by Russia. The official website of the Legion defines the process of selecting members, which includes several basic steps, including the submission of necessary documents to the Embassy of Ukraine, an interview and signing a contract. It is worth noting that combat experience is also mentioned among the selection criteria, which further casts doubt on the content of the widespread poster, according to which Ukraine selects Americans for the Legion based on their financial status.
About the Sources
The Russian-language account Злой Ёжик frequently publishes posts with anti-Ukrainian and anti-Western content, including false information. This account has appeared in the articles of “Myth Detector” a number of times. The Facebook user Niki Pov spreads disinformation with other Russian-language accounts (1,2) in a coordinated manner (1,2).
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