Kuleba on CBS and Amnesty data: their lies have had no effect on weapons supply

Olena Roshchina — MONDAY, 8 AUGUST 2022, 21:27

Dmytro Kuleba, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, said that Amnesty International's report on the Armed Forces endangering the civilian population and the CBS Reports documentary on problems with controlling the supply of arms have dealt an information blow to Ukraine, but have not prevented the transfer of weapons. 

Source: Facebook post by Dmytro Kuleba

Details: The Foreign Minister noted the synchronicity of these organisations’ actions with the efforts of Russian propaganda to stop the supply of Western weapons to Ukraine. He also emphasised that he expects an internal investigation from CBS and an apology from Amnesty.

Kuleba noted that since April, the Russians have been trying to undermine the political readiness of Ukraine's partners to supply weapons, using primitive manipulations claiming that weapons are apparently "disappearing" or may fall into "the wrong hands", that they "fuel the conflict instead of settlement", that "the Russians, of course, are bad, but the Ukrainians are no angels either," etc.

Quote from Kuleba: "Ukraine shot down the first wave of such lies back in May-June. Now the Russians are entering the second round.

I don't know whether the manipulative Amnesty report and the lying CBS film, which came out almost simultaneously, have anything to do with the Russian government. But I know for sure that both organisations, and the authors of these unsubstantiated ‘masterpieces’, have inflicted an unfair and unprovoked information attack on Ukraine in perfect sync with Russian propaganda."

Details: According to Kuleba, under intense public pressure, Amnesty and CBS have apologised - but these apologies are "as lame as their cause".

For example, Amnesty wrote a letter to journalists along the lines of "we’re not changing our position, but sorry if we caused you pain," while CBS admitted they had twisted everything, retracted the documentary and promised to make changes, but they also "obfuscated the supply of weapons" in their apology.

Kuleba said that Ukraine is not satisfied with such apologies, because the damage has already been done. He expects an internal investigation from CBS and a public clarification of "who allowed Russian propaganda on the air and for what purpose". From Amnesty he expects an apology "not only for the pain caused to Ukrainians, but also for violating the truth and reality of this war".

Quote from Kuleba: "But there is also good news. All these lies are not achieving their objectives for the moment. No partner or organisation in communication with Ukraine has voiced objections similar to the manipulations of Amnesty or CBS. And these lies have in no way affected the supply of weapons or undermined the high level of trust between Ukraine and its partners.

Our partners know perfectly well where and how much has been transferred and how it is being used. Fortunately, they don't get their information from Amnesty and CBS.

President Zelenskyy's team is continuing its systematic work to counter Russian manipulations. But this is a battle that will never be won once and for all. The Russians get a punch in the face, withdraw, and then come out for the next round. Therefore, it is necessary to combine all our efforts."

Background:

• The human rights organisation Amnesty International claimed on 4 August that the Ukrainian forces which are holding back the Russian invasion are endangering the civilian population by establishing bases and storing weapons in schools and hospitals. On 7 August, Amnesty International expressed regret for the "distress and anger" caused by their report.
• On 7 August, CBS released the documentary "Arming Ukraine" about the problems involved in controlling the supply of arms to Ukraine. The documentary claimed that only 30% of Western arms supplies ultimately reach the Ukrainian military. This claim was later deleted.

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