Frequent Fake news peddlers on cross-border misinformation have once again shared fake news to harm India’s foreign relations. A Pakistan-based account Iron Clad, has shared a claim regarding India and Russia relations. The X user has claimed, “An Indian diplomat has been arrested by Russian intelligence for spying on behalf of the CIA.”
The account is withheld in India but still garnered 637k views, at the time of writing the story. Following this, users on other social media platforms like Facebook also shared homogenous claims.
Fact Check
DFRAC Team investigated the viral claim via Google Keyword Search. During the process, we cross-checked media reports from both India and Russia. However, no claims corroborating the viral claim were found.
We also checked the official accounts of the MEA India spokesperson (@MEAIndia) and the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but no evidence or statements matching the claim were identified.
Moreover, according to the latest news from the Times of India, Russia seeks to invest in and expand train and component manufacturing within India to meet its domestic needs. Russian railway company TMH has expressed interest in setting up production facilities in India, with plans to potentially supply components back to Russia.
Conclusion
The claim that an Indian diplomat was arrested in Russia for spying is fake. No credible reports or official statements support this allegation.
