Social media users are sharing a video that shows Russian and Ukrainian soldiers in a standoff and falsely saying it shows the recent conflict in Ukraine. The video was taken in Crimea in 2014.
Examples can be seen (here) and (here).
The caption in one post reads: “Ukrainian and Russian soldiers face to face. #Russia #Ukraine #USA #JoeBiden #VladimirPutin #Putin #Biden #WorldWar3 #WWIII #RussiaUkraineConflict.”
The video being shared was originally posted by BBC News Turkey on March 4, 2014 on YouTube (here) with the headline in English: “Tense moments in Crimea”.
The description of the video in English reads: “There were tense moments at the Belbek Air Base, which belongs to Russia, just outside the city of Sevastopol. As the unarmed Ukrainian soldiers marched towards the base, the Russian soldiers on guard opened warning fire at the Ukrainian soldiers.”
Reuters reporting on this can be seen (here).
A video by The New York Times (here) shows the standoff from a different angle.
VERDICT
Miscaptioned. The video shows Russian and Ukrainian soldiers in a standoff in Crimea in 2014.
This article was produced by the Reuters Fact Check team. Read more about our fact-checking work here .
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