On February 6th, 2022, the Facebook page “Cardhu” published a post claiming that allegedly, the US Congress stated that if Russia invades Ukraine, Kyiv may fall in 72 hours.
The post is misleading since the assumption belongs not to the U.S. Congress or any of its representatives but to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark Mill. According to Fox News, the prediction was made by General Mill at a closed-door meeting at the Congress.
On February 6th, Fox News, citing its own sources in Congress, quoted General Mark Mill’s statement during a closed-door meeting in Congress that in the event of a full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, Kyiv might fall within 72 hours, resulting in the death of 15,000 Ukrainian and 4,000 Russian soldiers.
According to Fox News, General Mill made the announcement at a closed-door briefing with congressmen on February 2nd and 3rd. In addition, some American lawmakers expressed concern that the Biden administration did not act quickly in terms of providing significant military assistance to Ukraine, including anti-aircraft weapons and missile systems. Fox News reports that the meeting was also attended by officials from President Joe Biden’s administration, who responded to the concerns saying that if the U.S. were to provide significant military aid, Russia could use it as an excuse to invade the country. According to the publication, among the officials present at the meetings were Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin.
Neither the U.S. Congress nor any of its representatives have made such a statement. Notably, on February 2nd, an open hearing on the issue of Ukraine was held at the US Congress, which was broadcast live. Senators from the Committee on Cooperation and Security in Europe listened to Ben Hodges, a former commander of the US military in Europe, Fiona Hill, a former adviser to the US National Security Council, and William Taylor, the former acting head of the US diplomatic mission in Ukraine. In addition, part of the U.S. Congressmen visited Ukraine in January, where they met with President Volodymyr Zelensky and expressed their support. On January 21st, Congress registered the Defending Ukraine Sovereignty Act, authored by Democrat Congressman Gregory Meeks. In addition to providing security assistance to Ukraine, the act entails imposing sanctions against Russia in the event of an escalation of the situation.
Following General Mill’s announcement, Fox News asked Jake Sullivan, the president’s national security adviser, to comment. Sullivan avoided making predictions; however, stated that the U.S. was ready for any kind of developments. According to him, the U.S. provided material support to Ukraine and sent defense assistance, and, in case of war, it would be strategically costly for Russia.
Notably, the eighth aircraft sent from the US, loaded with military aid, has already arrived in Ukraine. In December last year, after the start of the mobilization of Russian armed forces along the borders of Ukraine, the U.S. allocated USD 200 million to help Ukraine. The United States and the Baltic states will provide an additional USD 600 million in military assistance to Ukraine. You can read more about the U.S. and NATO assistance to Ukraine in the “Myth Detector” article:
- Disinformation about the U.S. Military Support to Ukraine
The Facebook page “Cardhu” has been suspected of spreading manipulative claims around the statement of US President Joe Biden on the current events in Ukraine. For details, see the material prepared by “Myth Detector”:
- Is the minor intervention to Ukraine Acceptable for the U.S.?
About “Cardhu”
The Facebook page was created on July 23rd, 2017 and has been spreading hate speech against national, sexual and other minorities. The page is aimed at stirring up Euroscepticism and mistrust towards the North Atlantic Alliance. See about “Cadhu” by clicking the link.
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