Putin's February 21 Speech Was Not Recorded; 'Novaya Gazeta' Falsifies Claims – FIP

On February 24, just hours after Russia's military operations began in Ukraine, the Russian outlet 'Novaya Gazeta' released a statement on its social media pages, claiming that President Vladimir Putin's morning speech had been recorded days earlier, on February 21. The media outlet also attached a photo containing the metadata of the video.

According to this information, Putin's speech lasted approximately 55 minutes and 56 seconds and was recorded on February 21 around 19:00. The post quickly spread across various social media platforms.

However, the 'Fact-Checking Platform' has determined that 'Novaya Gazeta's' assertion does not align with reality. The image attributed to the February 24 speech actually relates to a separate address by Putin from February 21, during which he announced the recognition of the independence of the Luhansk and Donetsk 'people's republics.'

Even without verifying the video's metadata, it is evident that this speech indeed lasted 55 minutes and 56 seconds. The platform notes that several online tools can be utilized to check the video's metadata. For instance, verifying the link to Putin's February 24 speech on the exifmeta.com site reveals that the data differs from what was presented in the photograph published by 'Novaya Gazeta.'

Thus, it can be concluded that Vladimir Putin recorded the announcement of the war against Ukraine on February 24, and the speech lasted approximately 28 minutes.