FACT CHECK: No, The Soviet Flag Did Not Recently Fly Over The Reichstag
A video shared on Twitter claims the Soviet flag flew over the Reichstag in Berlin, Germany.
🇷🇺Unknown people hoist Soviet banner of Victory over Reichstag Bundestag (German Parliament Building) roof in Berlin, Germany’s Capital.
Action comes in DEFIANCE to Germany’s anti-Russian and anti-Soviet flag measures and in honor of Victory against Nazi Germany 78 years ago. pic.twitter.com/i2zLq3y1O8
— Pistis Sophia (@_PistisSophia) May 8, 2023
Verdict: False
There is no evidence that the Soviet flag was ever flown over the Reichstag in May 2023.
Fact Check:
Germany banned the display of Russian and Soviet flags on Victory in Europe Day, May 8, which commemorates the day Nazi Germany formally surrendered, according to The New York Times. (RELATED: Did The Leaked Pentagon Documents Show Ukraine Suffered 71,000 Dead?)
The video claims to show a Soviet flag flying over the Reichstag in Berlin. The tweet reads, “Unknown people hoist Soviet banner of Victory over Reichstag Bundestag (German Parliament Building) roof in Berlin, Germany’s Capital. Action comes in DEFIANCE to Germany’s anti-Russian and anti-Soviet flag measures and in honor of Victory against Nazi Germany 78 years ago.”
However, there is no evidence that a Soviet flag flew over the Reichstag on Victory Day. If one had flown over, media outlets would have covered it, yet none have. The Bundestag did not release any statements indicating that a Soviet flag was flown over the building.
A spokesperson for the Bundestag told Check Your Fact that no Soviet flag was flown over the Reichstag. A reporter from Correctiv.org visited the Reichstag on May 8 and did not see any Soviet flag flying over the building. Russian Telegram channels were the first to spread the claim, according to the outlet.
The faked image appears to take inspiration from a staged photo of a Soviet soldier raising the Soviet flag over the Reichstag in May 1945. The image was heavily modified to include smoke and the removal of wristwatches from the soldier, according to The International Center for Photography.
