Russian propaganda outlets have stepped up the spread of disinformation claiming that Western weapons supplied to Ukraine are allegedly ending up en masse on Europe’s “black market”.
This was reported by the Center for Countering Disinformation.
According to the CCD, Russian media—citing Palermo prosecutor Maurizio de Lucia and Italian media—claim that more than 780,000 units of weapons provided to Ukraine by partners were allegedly stolen and ended up on the black market, and that Ukrainian soldiers are supposedly supplying drones to the Italian mafia.
The Center stresses that this information is not true. The figure 780,465 refers to open data from Ukraine’s Ministry of Internal Affairs on the number of lost and stolen civilian and personal firearms in the country since the start of the full-scale invasion, not Western weaponry.
The CCD also refuted claims that the Italian mafia is allegedly buying Ukrainian drones.
According to the Center, the Palermo prosecutor did not make such statements. The Italian outlet’s article referred only to law enforcement concerns about potential risks of illegal arms trafficking in Europe due to the war, as well as criminal groups’ interest in modern military technologies.
The Center emphasized that Ukraine has a multi-level system for tracking and controlling the use of Western military assistance, involving partner countries, and that since 2022 no confirmed evidence has been made public of Ukraine selling Western weapons on the “black market”.
In the CCD’s assessment, the aim of this information campaign is to discredit Ukraine, undermine the trust of international partners, and attempt to cast doubt on the effectiveness of oversight of military aid.