Did Nancy Pelosi's son Paul Pelosi Jr. head an oil and gas company that did business in Ukraine? No, that's not true: Pelosi Jr. was briefly on the board of Viscoil, a U.S. energy company based in Southern California. The claim reappeared in a video (archived here) on TikTok where it was published by poniatnayapolitika on June 1, 2023. The…

Did Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko propose launching nuclear weapons against Poland? No, that's not true: Lukashenko never said that and the sound in a video claiming to show the Belarusian leader making such a statement has been altered. The claim originated from a video (archived here) published on TikTok by mirandichek on June 7, 2023. The video shows the Belarusian…

Did famous Belarusian tennis player Aryna Sabalenka call Lukashenko an asshole? No, that's not true: The video in English was translated incorrectly, where the swear word was added. The story originated from a video (archived here) where it was published by eastern_europe_news on June 8, 2023, under the title "Lukashenko is an asshole for athletes." The text on the video,…

Are Russia and Belarus one nation, and does Belarusian not exist as a language? No, that's not true: This claim is a myth. Belarus is internationally recognized as an independent country with two official languages: Belarusian and Russian, as stated in the Constitution of the Republic of Belarus. On February 3, 2023, the claim appeared in a video posted on…

Правда ли, что Беларусь начала войну с Литвой за доступ к морю? Нет, это неправда. Беларусь никогда не заявляла о намерении вторгнуться в Литву. Эти утверждения ― выдумка так называемых ТикТок-мапперов, от английского mappers (картографы). Они создают контент, публикуя различные карты в социальных сетях и сопровождая их утверждениями, которые не всегда достоверны. Данное утверждение появилось в видео (более не доступно,…

Did the Polish general Waldemar Skrzypczak, claim that Poland is preparing for an armed coup in Belarus and that he is involved in its military support? No, that's not true: The retired general appeared on Polsat News' Gosc Wydarzen program on May 23, 2023, to discuss recent events in Belgorod, Russia. During the interview, he did not mention any plans…

Did Viktor Lukashenko, the eldest son of Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, escape to China on June 1, 2023? No, that's not true: he was seen in public in Belarus on June 3, 2023, two days after his alleged departure, as claimed on social media. The claim appeared in a video (archived here) published on TikTok by news_ua_24_7 on June 1,…

Did Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko and Russian President Vladimir Putin sign an agreement to annex Belarusian territories to Russia? No, that's not true: The Republic of Belarus is an independent country and no such pact has been signed at the time of this writing. The claim originated from a video (archived here) published on TikTok by tomilovzelenskiy on May, 26,…

Did the President of Belarus get hospitalized in Moscow after a meeting with Putin and now remains in critical condition? No, that's not true: Alexander Lukashenko visited Moscow for the Eurasian Economic Forum from May 24 to 25, 2023 and had a meeting with the Russian president, but the Belarusian leader did not require hospitalization. The claim appeared in a…

Did Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in a video, say the Caspian Sea was the territory of Belarus and promise to find all Belarusians who launched their rockets from the shores of the Caspian Sea? No, that's not true: Lead Stories found this video has been manipulated. This claim has been published by different TikTok accounts in Russian. On April 7,…

Have three priests of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate been physically attacked in March 2022 and January 2023 in Ukraine, as part of a systematic effort to intimidate and harass them? No, there is no evidence to support the claim: The specific cases cited as examples in a recent Belarusian TV show are missing context or provide…

Did the Belarusian President say that NATO should consider opening a second front against Russia? No, that's not true: The video was edited and altered from an original address to the nation in the parliament. The Belarusian president was referring to Polish Defense Minister Blaszczak, who supposedly said that NATO should seriously consider opening a second front against Belarus. Lukashenko…

Did Polish authorities demolish a Soviet era WWII monument at the gravesite of Red Army soldiers? No, that's not true: The site contained no graves at the time the monument was dismantled in accordance with a 2016 Polish law aimed at removing monuments that glorify the Red Army. The claim appeared in a video (archived here) where it was published…

Did Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko decide to break off ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin? No, that's not true: The video fragment was taken from Lukashenko's speech during VI All Belarusian People's Assembly in February, 2021. When giving the speech, Lukashenko referred to the opposition initiative "Intensive reform package for Belarus," which lists the goals of the opposition political organizations,…

Is Netflix producing a movie titled 'Zelenskyy', where all the actors are Black? No, that's not true: There is no publicly available information that such a movie is in production as of May 24, 2023. The actor Daniel Kaluuya is not reported to be involved in a movie by that title. The video (archived here) was published on TikTok.com on…

Was Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko replaced by a twin during his visit to an air defense command center on May 15? No, that's not true: the images presented in the video were altered. The story appeared in a video (archived here) where it was published by @bigkross50 on May 18, 2023. It opened: Shock! Lukashenko's double put Belarusian Army on…

Did financier and philanthropist George Soros die from a heart attack?? No, that's not true: The 92-year-old investor is alive, as he himself announced via his Twitter account. The claim appeared in a video (archived here) on May 15, 2023, posted on TikTok account @tatiana.sevastianova. The caption, translated by Lead Stories staff, reads: According to Western media news reports, George…

Did Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko order to close borders with neighboring countries? No, that's not true: As of May 23, 2023 there is still free movement at the border with Ukraine, Poland, and Lithuania. The claim originated from a video (archived here) where it was published by black...whale on February 25, 2023 under the title "About closing of the Polish…

Did an LGBT parade take place in Ukraine on May 9, 2023, instead of a Victory Parade? No, that's not true: no parade, neither military nor LGBT, took place in Ukraine on that day. The claim appeared in a video (archived here), published on TikTok on May 8, 2023, by the pro-Russian account @proritsatel.tm after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had…

Did Russia's President Vladimir Putin launch a missile attack on Ukraine that hit Europe, and was he expected to broadcast live to communicate the results of the new war? No, that's not true: Lead Stories found no credible reports of such an attack. No announcement of an upcoming live broadcast by President Putin was published on the Kremlin's official website.…