A video that went viral on TikTok exposes an alleged threat from Russia to Mexico for rejecting the invasion of Ukraine, but the images contain scenes from 2018 and current events offline.
By Jesus Garcia | La Opinion | FEB. 27, 2022 | Photo credit: Getty Images
A video that went viral on TikTok states that Russian President Vladimir Putin issued a warning to the government of Mexican Andrés Manuel López Obrador, for sticking to the policy of the United States against the invasion of Ukraine.
However, after a review of this newspaper with the support of a person who speaks Russian, it was confirmed that the video of the alleged message with the threats is false, since it combines events from 2018 with current ones such as an alleged Russian television report.
The Spanish subtitles in the video do not agree with the statements of the television host or with Putin's message about Mexico.
"Vladimir responded subtly [to Mexico] and invited the Mexican government not to interfere in the decisions of his mandate... [Putin] stressed that any threat, intimidation or interference that endangers the interests of our nation will have serious consequences," say the subtitles of the video in Russian.
He then translates a direct message from Putin that supposedly says: "I ask the nations of Western and America not to intervene with unfounded opinions... A few hours ago, the government of the country next to the southern border of the United States... asked for a ceasefire to be stopped... No threat or conspiracy against our homeland will be tolerated... Do not get involved in matters of our government."
An academic from the City University of New York (CUNY) - who speaks Russian, but preferred to omit her name - confirmed to this newspaper the discrepancy in the messages, since the presenter says that Putin congratulated the Mexican president after winning the elections, which happened in 2018, and the president refers to a demonstration on the anniversary of World War II.
The video includes images of Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard, who talks about Mexico's position before the United Nations Security Council last Thursday.
A message from Putin is also included, but the expert points out that it is "cut off," although it is heard asking the Russians to "go out and remember" the victims of World War II.
Although Putin threatened with actions "never seen in his history" to the countries that intervene directly in the armed conflict, he has not addressed a direct message to Mexico or its president López Obrador, who had been criticized for not being sufficiently clear in his rejection of the invasion of Ukraine.
Conclusion: this is false news.
