TikTok Video Posted by Russian Propagandists Distorts Ukrainian Official's Statement

A recent six-second video circulating on the TikTok social network featuring Oleksiy Danilov, the secretary of Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council (NSDC), turned out to be a manipulated fake video made by Russian propagandists to create a misleading narrative about the Ukrainian government’s mobilization efforts.

The video includes a text overlay claiming that “Danilov called territorial recruitment centers a God's hand.”

In the video soundtrack, you can really hear the following words: “Everything happening in the world is guided by God. You wouldn't argue with God, would you?”

However, upon closer examination, it is evident that the dialog had been lifted from a conversation that took place during a Radio NV program posted on YouTube on March 28, 2023.

In the original video Danilov is responding to a journalist's question about the termination of a lease agreement with the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) and the subsequent vacating of the premises of the Kyiv Pechersk Lavra monastery by the organization.

The out-of-context excerpt, readily identifiable as having been taken from the timeline of 16:52 to 16:58 of the original interview, relates to Danilov's explanation of when the lease agreement with the church would be officially terminated.

“It will be an ordinary day; nothing strategic or global will happen. The laws of our country will be respected by everyone without exception. I want to remind you that if you believe that everything happening in the world is guided by God, then accept that God's will shapes events today,” Danilov said. 

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“You wouldn't argue with God, would you? Therefore, understand that God has decreed that on the 29th, you should leave this monastery and relocate to another place,” he added.  

Contrary to the misleading claim, Danilov's words have no connection to military recruitment centers or mobilization efforts in Ukraine.

The propagandists, notably the pro-Russian blogger Anatoly Shariy and a pro-Kremlin Russian Telegram channel Mriya, falsely used this version of the video in their posts on March 29, 2023.

It is noteworthy that the version of the video utilized by propagandists originates from Russian sources, as indicated by the Russian watermark “Novoye Izdaniye” seen in the upper left corner. This deceptive tactic aims to perpetuate a false narrative about the Ukrainian government's actions and create a negative image for their own purposes.