An Instagram video that went viral claimed that Russian President Vladimir Putin threatened to send all illegal Chinese immigrants in Russia to fight in Ukraine, resulting in a sudden rush of flights back to China. The video was liked more than 55,000 times, but the claim was false. The video actually showed people traveling from Russia for the New Year’s holiday and had nothing to do with Putin’s decree to speed up the path to citizenship for foreigners who join the Russian military. This decree, signed on January 4, is part of an ongoing effort by Russia to replenish its troops fighting in Ukraine and was not related to the viral video. In fact, reports of police raids targeting migrants in Russian cities have been ongoing, and those detained are sometimes pressured to sign contracts with the military. The Instagram post was debunked by Reuters and the social media user who shared the post could not be reached for comment. Therefore, the claim that Putin threatened to send illegal Chinese immigrants to fight in Ukraine is false, and the video actually showed people traveling for the New Year’s holiday and had nothing to do with Putin’s decree.
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