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VERA FILES FACT CHECK: NO Russian announcement of US invasion

Amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, a Filipino Facebook (FB) page posted a video claiming Russia has declared an attack on the United States (U.S.). It is false.

Published on July 19, the video headline read: “DELIKADO RUSSIA SINABING LULUSOB SA TERITORYO NG UNITED STATES (Dangerous! Russia declared invasion of United States territory)!”

While a series of short clips featuring military conflict played, the video’s narrator told a less definitive narrative. Citing a July 7 The EurAsian Times article, it stated that Russia “might” invade Alaska in retaliation against the superpower’s supposed decision to stop doing business with Russia.

The Russian government has neither formally declared war against the U.S. nor announced any moves to reclaim Alaska, a former Russian territory sold to the U.S. in 1867.

However, Vyacheslav Volodin, speaker of the Russian parliament’s lower house, threatened on July 6 to “claim back” Alaska if the U.S. froze or seized Russian assets abroad as punishment for its invasion of Ukraine.

The U.S. government has levied heavy economic sanctions against the Russian Federation, prohibiting any U.S. citizen from investing into Russia, transacting with any Russian state-owned enterprises and more.

The FB page Terong Explained (created on April 2), which published another piece of disinformation earlier this month, was also behind this untrue video. (Read VERA FILES FACT CHECK: Photos MISUSED to show Chinese celebrating Shinzo Abe’s death)

The false post has garnered more than 4,700 reactions, 490 comments, 290 shares and 144,000 views as of publishing.