FACT CHECK: Facebook Video Does Not Show Ukrainian Soldiers ā€˜Faking Combatā€™

Christine Sellers | Fact Check Reporter

A video shared on Facebook claims to show Ukrainian soldiers purportedly “faking combat” in order to get money from the U.S.

Verdict: False

The video shows a behind-the-scenes look at a music video for a song called “Brothers” by Misha Scorpion and Vitsik, not Ukrainian soldiers “faking combat.”

Fact Check:

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the end of his country’s war with Russia “is still very, very far away,” according to The Associated Press. Following a recent blow-up with Zelenskyy in the Oval Office, President Donald Trump referred to the Ukrainian President’s remark as “the worst statement that could have been made” on TRUTH Social, the outlet reported.

The Facebook video claims to show Ukrainian soldiers purportedly “faking combat” in order to get money from the U.S. In the video, a female soldier with blonde hair can be seen having makeup applied. What appears to be other soldiers are visible in the video’s background.

“Ukraine ‘soldiers’ have resorted to faking combat in order to appear ‘war torn’ so the slush fund from the U.S. keeps churning money their way! What do you think about this?” the video’s caption reads.

Besides Facebook, the video also circulated on X, where it has received over 30,000 views as of writing. The video bears a label indicating it originally stems from TikTok and was shared by user @vitsikkkk2.

The claim is false. A March 2 reply to the X post states the clip is “from a music video.” Using a keyword search, Check Your Fact found a music video for a song called “Brothers” by Misha Scorpion and Vitsik on YouTube. The same blonde female soldier is shown at the video’s 1:31-minute mark.

Likewise, the female soldier can be seen having her makeup applied from a slightly different angle via a Feb. 26 video shared to TikTok by @vitsikkkk2. She also appears in a recent Instagram video posted by @vitsikkk that features the song “Brothers” as its audio.

In addition, India Today debunked the claim on March 3. According to the outlet, the video gives a behind-the-scenes look at the filming of the music video and does not show Ukrainian soldiers “faking combat” to get money from the U.S. (RELATED: Ukraine Has Not Banned TRUTH Social)

This is not the first time a false claim has circulated online. Check Your Fact previously debunked an X video claiming to show Russians ambushing American fighters in Ukraine.

Christine Sellers

Fact Check Reporter

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