Five fibs from Vladimir: how Putin distorted the facts about Ukraine

Vladimir Putin broke his silence over the crisis in Ukraine on Tuesday, addressing a press conference in Moscow that was delayed by what a state television channel called a hacking attack.After politely writing down reporters' questions, Putin launched into a tirade against the new government in Kiev, at one point even demanding that a reporter say whether or not he agreed that the transfer of power in Kiev had been an "unconstitutional coup".In the course of the diatribe, Putin distorted several facts. Here are five of the best:1. The unidentified armed men who took control of Crimea were local self-defence unitsAlthough the uniforms did not have insignia, they were easily identified as Russian army issue. The men also seemed suspiciously well trained. Putin argued that anyone could have bought Russian uniforms: "The post-Soviet space is full of such uniforms."Yet the military-grade weapons that the troops were carrying, from Kalashnikovs to Dragunov sniper rifles to bazookas, are not as easy to explain away. Also, Guardian reporters have seen unidentified troops taking over Crimean airbases driving in military vehicles with Russian plates, which the foreign ministry has admitted are moving around the peninsula.2. Western-backed forces carried out the coupPutin said that the downfall of former president Viktor Yanukovych's government had been backed by western countries and incited by people "sitting in America doing experiments, like on rats", adding: "I think that this was all well prepared. Of course there are military units and they are there to this day, they are well-prepared and in this the western instructors did well."While western donors have given hundreds of thousands of dollars to groups campaigning against Yanukovych's regime, there is no evidence that either the US or UK have trained opposition forces militarily. The so-called "self-defence units" which took part in the pro-European protests did not appear to have any military training, displaying instead some poor discipline and relying on improvised equipment such as motorcycle helmets and table legs.3. Protesters in Ukraine were killed by former opposition snipersThe president said that the dozens of anti-Russian protesters killed by sniper bullets were victims of their own leaders. "There is the opinion that [snipers shot] on the orders of one of the opposition parties," he said, despite eyewitness accounts of police snipers shooting protesters. While Putin cited "freely available information" to back his claim, there is also video footage of snipers in police uniforms shooting at people.4. Pro-Europe demonstrators shot and burned former ruling party employeesPutin claimed that protesters had shot one employee of the former ruling party and set another on fire. In reality, protestors threw stones and Molotov cocktails at a Party of Regions office on 18 February, after which a fire broke out. Emergency services rescued several people but were not able to save one office worker who died in the blaze. There were no credible reports that anyone had been shot.5. Yanukovych is the legitimate president of UkraineWhen it came to the ousted Yanukovych government, Putin seemed to want to have his cake and eat it . On the one hand, the Russian president said he agreed with protesters that Ukraine's previous regimes were all "crooks" and admitted Yanukovych had no power and no political future. On the other, he still insisted Yanukovych remained the legitimate president.(theguardian.com)ANN.Az