The West is a player in the Ukraine information war. Unlike Russia, it has to convince the public

Corpses strewn through wrecked buildings in the aftermath of an apparently deadly explosion. Distraught mourners, grieving for lost loved ones. And amid the smoldering ruins, evidence of Western military equipment.

In a world all too familiar with graphic images of one disaster after another, it's easy to imagine the grim footage.

And the United States says that's exactly what this is: make-believe violence. It says Russia is plotting to stage a fake attack, and shoot a gory propaganda video of it, as a pretext for an invasion of Ukraine. The clip would frame the Ukrainian military -- and by extension, their NATO allies -- for an attack on Russian-speaking people.