Claim: Former Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych was removed from office in 2014 through a coup d’etat.
Rating: FALSE
Why we fact-checked this: As of writing, the Facebook post dated April 30 has accumulated 2,500 reactions, 495 comments, and 1,300 shares. The author of the post, AncientKnowledge2023, currently has 351,000 followers.
The post includes a photo showing late US Senator John McCain and senators Lindsey Graham and Amy Klobuchar posing alongside Ukrainian troops. Text overlaid on the photo claims that the 2014 “coup” was orchestrated by the US through the Central Intelligence Agency, and that a supposed puppet government has been “slaughtering innocent Russia-supporting citizens in Donbas since 2015.”
The facts: Yanukovych was not removed through a coup. The pro-Moscow Ukrainian leader fled Kiev on February 22, 2014, after being ousted by Ukraine’s parliament and following a week of deadly violence in anti-government protests known as the Maidan protests. The protests, which began in November 2013, were triggered by Yanukovych dropping a trade deal with the European Union in favor of a $15 billion bailout from Moscow. (READ: Ukraine ushers in new era, president flees)
Yanukovych later resurfaced in Russia a week after he fled Ukraine. In October 2014, Russian President Vladimir Putin admitted that Russia aided the deposed Ukrainian leader. “I have not been overthrown by anyone, I was compelled to leave Ukraine due to an immediate threat to my life and the life of those close to me,” Yanukovych said.
In 2019, a Kiev court found Yanukovych guilty of high treason and sentenced him in absentia for 13 years for calling on Putin to send troops at the height of the protests.
Claims portraying the 2014 protests as a “coup” have mostly surfaced from pro-Kremlin media outlets. EU vs Disinfo, a website that fact-checks pro-Kremlin disinformation, has flagged the false portrayal of the Maidan protests as a coup. Voice of America also has a similar article on the topic.
The photo featured in the misleading post was originally from a visit by McCain, Graham, and Klobuchar to Ukrainian troops at a combat post on New Year’s Eve 2016. The post provides no further evidence to support its claim, instead linking to a digital book that claims to have “hidden insights from the esoteric realm.”
Russia-Ukraine: The misleading post surfaced amid the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, which has been raging since February 2022. On May 3, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and US President Donald Trump met on the sidelines of Pope Francis’ funeral in the Vatican. The two leaders agreed that a 30-day ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia was the correct first step towards ending the hostilities. Zelenskyy and Trump also discussed air defenses and sanctions against Russia, and a recently signed minerals deal between Ukraine and the US.
Putin, meanwhile, remarked that Russia has the strength to end the war in Ukraine with a Russian victory, and expressed hope that the war would not escalate to the use of nuclear weapons.
Previous fact-checks: Rappler has previously fact-checked claims on Ukraine and Russia:
- FACT CHECK: Russia did not declare war on US
- FACT CHECK: Europe did not deploy 1 million troops against Russia
- FACT CHECK: Putin is alive, not killed in Moscow limo explosion
– Ramon Franco Verano/Rappler.com
Ramon Franco Verano is a graduate of Rappler’s volunteer program. He is a fourth year History student at the University of Santo Tomas. This fact check was reviewed by a member of Rappler’s research team and a senior editor. Learn more about Rappler’s fact-checking mentorship program here.
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