In recent weeks, we are observing how hysterically Russia is trying to implement a variety of scenarios toward finding a casus belli for the war with Ukraine, and one of the most actively covered issues is the one of UAVs.
This year alone, Russian propaganda and its puppets in Belarus have generated several primitive fake stories, which were, however, effective enough only for domestic consumption.
First of all, let me remind you that on February 2, I posted an article “Russian propaganda could use strike UAV factor for casus belli purposes” where I reported on Russia’s plot to use strike UAVs against, say, civilians, only to discredit Ukraine. In this piece, I noted that Russia has in its disposal what’s left of a downed Bayraktar TB2 UAV. But, in addition to the debris, due to Russia’s participation in the conflicts in Syria and Libya, it has also got hold of the elements of Turkish ammunition, used for these drones, at times even against Russian targets, such as the Pantsir-S1 air defense missile systems.
Already on February 3, Russia, through Belarus, launched a large-scale fake news spin alleging that a Ukrainian UAV had penetrated deep into Belarus for a reconnaissance mission. This sham story didn’t last long, failing to withstand simple criticism so it was swiftly debunked. And some time later, it turned out that the “Ukrainian” UAV shot down in Belarus was in fact a piece hastily made by the occupiers.
However, in Russia and Belarus’ internal information space, this report remained irrefutable and the factor of the information “iron curtain” prompted the masterminds behind the fake to develop it further, despite the fact that outside of that curtain, they looked just too ridiculous.
So, on February 8, acting in Russia’s interests, having previously accused Ukraine of “violating” their airspace, Belarus aimed its accusations at Latvia, claiming that the Latvian An-2 plane also flew in without permission. Of course, this fake story has also been debunked. But it is clearly visible that Russian propaganda, through its puppets in Belarus and in the occupied territories of Ukraine, is trying in every possible way to play the card of airspace violations and the threat posed by UAVs.
And in this context, I once again have to recall my piece of December 18, 2021, dedicated to the report of the Russians who got in their disposal from war criminal Khalifa Haftar the debris of the Bayraktar TB2 strike drone.
The fact is that in 2020, a fake story was already circulating in the fringe segment of the runet, claiming that Armenia staged a “genocide” involving the Azerbaijan-operated Bayraktar TB2. The thing is though that in these reports, photos were used of the Bayraktar TB2 UAVs shot down in Libya, not in Karabakh.
The media also referred to a video, published by the Armenian side, which were regularly posting fake news and brazenly lying about the course of hostilities. The video showed several elements of the Bayraktar TB2 UAV allegedly shot down during hostilities in Karabakh. But then the question arose, if they got hold of these Bayraktar elements, where’s the drone itself?
To date, there is no reliable, official information about the downing of any Bayraktar TB2 drones during the 44-day war in Karabakh. This is due to the fact that these UAVs were used with extreme caution. But where did the Armenians get the drone’s elements?
It’s simple: Russia, which has had at its disposal the debris of the Bayraktar TB2 strike drone, downed in Libya in mid-2020, handed some of them over to Yerevan to craft jingoistic fake news. And, similarly, the debris can be forwarded to both the Russian puppets in “DPR-LPR” and Belarus, to create the required background for a casus belli.
Of course, it is not ruled out that other foreign weaponry could be employed in an act of provocation, especially since the so-called “head” of the so-called “DPR,” Denis Pushilin, announced a press conference, trying to attract foreign journalists for February 11.