Claim: France sent troops to fight in Russia-Ukraine war.
AP Assessment: Incorrect. gave French Ministry of Foreign Affairs A statement on X said France had not deployed troops to Ukraine, calling the claim “misinformation”. Deployment reports refer to 3 May. Blog post By Stephen Bryan, Deputy Under Secretary of Defense during the Reagan Administration.
The Facts: Social media users are pointing to the blog post as evidence that French troops have been sent to fight Russia alongside Ukraine as the war continues. In his third year.
“France has officially sent its first troops to Ukraine,” the blog post reads. “They are deployed in support of Ukraine’s 54th Independent Mechanized Brigade in Slavyansk. The French troops are drawn from the French 3rd Infantry Regiment, one of the main elements of the French Foreign Legion (Légion étrangère). .
It added that 100 of the expected 1,500 French troops had arrived so far.
Many social media posts included a screenshot of the blog post. As it appeared Republished on another website. One such X post has received more than 3,000 likes and shares as of Monday.
But the French Foreign Ministry categorically denied the deployment of French troops to fight in the war between Russia and Ukraine.
“Fake News Alert,” this Written on x. “Disinformation campaigns about France’s support for Ukraine are as active as ever. Let’s take a look. France has not sent troops to #Ukraine.
Macron said in an interview On Thursday, it appeared that he had not ruled out sending troops to Ukraine. Echoing the comments It has made in recent months. He did not announce the deployment of the French army.
The claim is spreading online. Quoted a post Posted on Brian’s blog Friday titled, “France Sends Troops to Ukraine.” The Post does not attribute its reporting to any sources.
Brian published another blog post on Monday, where he admitted he “could be wrong” about France’s alleged deployment to Ukraine. they also Sources provided for his post from Friday and explained his reporting ethics.
The earliest source on the French troop deployment is an April 12 article by Bryan on a Russian military news website, which states that he “can neither confirm nor deny this information. ” It relied on reports from a Russian Telegram channel and a Russian journalist, who reportedly said the information was unconfirmed.
An April 13 post by Sputnik, the state-run Russian news agency, cited the Russian Telegram channel and quoted a Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman as previously warning that “France is planning to send 1,500 troops to Ukraine in April.” will prepare.” The same text is used in a Facebook post published on the same day by a page that describes itself as “a gaming platform used for opinions outside of humor and spontaneous dialogue.” ” Brian referred to both.
Finally, Brian lists an April 14th post from a website that regularly promotes conspiracy theories.
In response to a request for comment from The Associated Press, Brian pointed to a second blog post and wrote that “For denial, the French always deny anyone is in Ukraine.”
of France 3rd Foreign Infantry RegimentThe Foreign Legion has been based in Kourou, French Guiana since 1973. Its responsibilities include protecting Guyana’s space center and fighting against illegal gold panning.
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This is part of AP’s effort to address the widely shared false and misleading information that is circulating online. Learn more about fact-checking at AP..
Credit : apnews.com
