A YouTube video claims that Russian President Vladimir Putin had sent a letter to help former president Rodrigo Duterte be released from detention in The Hague, Netherlands. This is not true. Putin has made no such commitment.
Uploaded on April 6, the video bore the following headline:
“HaLa May Reresbak! May Letter ng Dumating TutuL0ng nasi Putin? PRRD Palalabasin na? BBM Kinarma na?
(Oh no, someone will fight back! A letter came saying Putin will help? PRRD will be released? BBM got karma?)”
Its thumbnail bore photos of Putin, Duterte and President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., along with a text that read:
“PUTIN HUMAKBANG NA? MAY PINADALA NG LETTER, PUTIN ILALABAS NA SI PRRD? LAGOT BBM AT ICC?
(Putin has moved? Sent a letter, Putin will free PRRD? BBM and ICC in trouble?)”
Putin, who is facing an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC), has neither expressed support for Duterte nor issued any pronouncement about helping him to be released.
The former president has been detained since March 12 at the Scheveningen prison in The Hague for crimes against humanity in connection with his bloody drug war that resulted in the deaths of thousands of suspected drug pushers and users as well as innocent civilians.
The video, which showed Duterte shaking hands with Putin, mentioned that Greco Belgica, former chairman of the now defunct Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission under Duterte, wrote a letter on April 1 asking Putin to “declare the ICC’s actions deplorable and illegal.” The Russian president has not replied to Belgica’s appeal.
Uploaded by YouTube channel PINAS NEWS HEADLINES, the erroneous video has so far received 16,672 interactions.
VERA Files Fact Check previously debunked a bogus quote card featuring Putin supposedly refusing peace talks with Ukraine if Duterte is not released by the ICC.
