Russian state media is spreading misinformation about the whereabouts of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in what analysts have called an attempt to discourage resistance fighters and erode support for Ukraine around the world.

An article published by Russian news agency Tass this week quoted a Russian lawmaker as saying that Zelenskyy “hastily fled” Kiev for Lviv in far western Ukraine, despite photos and video clips showing him at leading the defense of Ukraine from its capital.

It is one of many distorted claims stemming from a Russian propaganda and disinformation campaign aimed at bolstering domestic support for the invasion and undermining Ukrainian resolve. But the same tactics that have supported such propaganda for years collide with a much more complex reality where claims can be instantly and credibly refuted on social media.

Zelenskyyin Kyiv’s videos and photos quickly became some of the defining images of the invasion, rallying support for Ukraine at home and abroad and defying Russia’s attempt to control public perception.

By claiming he fled Kiev, Russia hopes to undermine Zelenskyy’s status as a Ukrainian hero while suggesting that legitimate sources of news and information are unreliable, according to University professor Sarah Oates. from Maryland who studies Russian propaganda.

For Oates, it’s a move that smacks of desperation from a Russian propaganda machine that can’t compete with viral footage of the Ukrainian defiance.

“They are agitated. They’ve been doing this for decades and they have a very well-oiled delivery system, but right now their content just isn’t working,” Oates said. “The Ukrainians may be completely overwhelmed by the traditional army, but they are winning the propaganda war.”

Some of the most popular posts falsely claiming that Zelensky has leaked are clearly aimed at an international audience. The Sputnik media published translated versions of the story not only in English and Spanish, but also in Portuguese and Vietnamese. A Spanish-language TikTok video created by Sputnik – to the beats of US band Twenty One Pilots – has racked up more than 2.3 million views.

Zelenskyy declined American offers to help him evacuate the city.

“The fight is here; I need ammunition, not a round,” Zelenskyy said last week, according to a senior US intelligence official with direct knowledge of the conversation.

Despite evidence that Zelenskyy remains in Kyiv, Sputnik and Tasshave have not withdrawn their claims or added corrections. The story was also reposted in Italy, India and China.

The false story began spreading on Twitter on Friday when George Papadopoulous, a former aide to former President Donald Trump, posted a link to the allegation in an Italian publication. Papadopoulos served time in prison for lying to the FBI during its investigation into Russian interference on Trump’s behalf in the 2016 election.

“Breaking: Zelensky, after saying he wouldn’t abandon Ukraine, fled the country,” Papadopoulous tweeted. He did not immediately return a message seeking comment on Friday.

Claims that Zelenskyy abandoned the capital aren’t the only narratives Russia is trying to use to lower Ukrainian morale, according to Roman Osadchuk, a Ukraine-based analyst at the Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab. He said Russian forces had also tried to spread allegations that Ukraine had surrendered.

At the start of the invasion, a fake account believed to be controlled by Zelenskyy appeared on the Telegram platform telling Ukrainians to surrender to the invaders.

“Attacking morale seems to be really important for Russian forces,” Osadchuk said Friday in an online chat about the conflict.

After the president of the European Union called for a ban on Russian state media, a wave of tech companies blocked their platforms’ channels within the EU. They include Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, as well as TikTok and Google, which owns YouTube.

TikTok, which has more than a billion users worldwide, may be the main front in the information war running alongside the military invasion, according to Ciaran O’Connor, an analyst who studies online disinformation at the Institute for Strategic Dialogue. TikTok’s loose content moderation policies compared to Facebook or YouTube make it a more effective way to spread misinformation and propaganda.

One of the favored tactics used by Russian state media is to highlight pro-Russian comments by Western leaders to divide their opponents, O’Connor said. For example, Russian news agency RIA Novosti uploaded a TikTok music video this week featuring Trump’s recent praise of Russian President Vladimir Putin. It has been viewed over 4 million times.

“This is one of the first major wars in which TikTok has been at the forefront of events on the ground,” O’Connor said, “both for people watching from afar but also for those trying to document events, tell stories and shape perceptions.”

___

Klepper reported from Providence, RI