EUvsDisinfo: Let's sing the nuclear song! (Let’s get nuclear!)
The Kremlin's tactics are not developing, but are becoming more and more degenerate and insidious. It includes talking about nuclear weapons, discrediting the democratic processes in the EU and even reaching a large-scale disinformation campaign called Operation "Overload". Through all of this, Kremlin propagandists continue to sow division and mistrust.
A king against weakness
When they are suddenly overwhelmed by thoughts that life is short or that they have become old-fashioned, some people buy, for example, a sports car. Yet others, in search of a magic potion to restore their lost power, resort to empty threats of nuclear weapons. The latest example of flippant talk about the nuclear threat, as if casual conversation around the dinner table, came from Lavrov – he made nuclear threats over the upcoming delivery of F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine. Medvedev wasn't far behind and even surpassed Lavrov's wild talk by jumping in with his own threats of a nuclear apocalypse - Medvedev insists that this time the Kremlin is not bluffing at all about using nuclear weapons.
Madness aside
All craziness aside, these hollow nuclear threats serve the Kremlin and its supporters as a means of information warfare. This information cannon has multiple warheads.
First, nuclear threats attempt to distort the risk calculation of decision-makers in Western capitals and affect the overall level of military support Ukraine receives from Western countries. Second, they aim to fuel fears among Western citizens and reduce public support for Ukraine's efforts to defend itself against Moscow's brutal invasion. Third, on a more tactical level, nuclear talk seeks to limit the ability of the Ukrainian armed forces to fully utilize their military capabilities – for example, against the concentration of forces inside Russia. Finally, the nuclear weapons rattle show broadcast to the Russian public portrays aging Kremlin veterans as still powerful and strong men.
Operation “Overload“
The recently released report < /strong>for Operation “Overload“ of the organization “CheckFirst“ revealed how circles linked to the Kremlin were running a massive disinformation campaign. The campaign targets fact-checkers, media newsrooms and academic researchers worldwide, aiming to deplete their resources and manipulate trusted information ecosystems so that they push pro-Russian propaganda and the Kremlin's political agenda.
Operation “Overload“ uses a multi-layered strategy that includes coordinated email campaigns, use of Telegram channels to host and distribute content, a network of fake X accounts; (formerly “Twitter”) and distribution of manipulated content through Russia-linked websites such as the “Pravda” network. The operation mixes real with fabricated events, spreads stories with sequels and impersonates reputable media, thereby spreading Russian propaganda while at the same time trying to mislead and “jam” credible media organizations and fact-checkers and exhaust their resources.
How the Kremlin is trying to manipulate the election
Between June 6 and 9, the elections for the European Parliament are held in the 27 EU member states. Hundreds of millions of people have the right to vote in the largest demonstration of the power of democracy in Europe. The elections will give the European Parliament a mandate for the next five years and lead to the election of the next President of the European Commission and Commissioners. The Russians are trying to smear the leaders; to sow mistrust, doubt and division; to flood social media and the information space with falsehoods; as well as suggesting by diverting the topic that “I may not be right, but you are not without sin either”. All these efforts are aimed at souring the atmosphere, discouraging people from voting and manipulating or distorting the agenda in the run-up to the European elections. These manipulative practices also seem to set the stage for narratives to challenge the legitimacy of election results and attack post-election processes. Among other things, they target the legitimacy of the Union as a whole.
Don't be fooled – we encourage everyone who has the right to vote to participate in the elections and contribute to the strengthening of our European Union.
Other topics in this week's review from EUvsDisinfo:
- In the Kremlin's twisted disinformation fantasy, Russia fights globalist regimes to save Europe. These manipulations desperately try with their moral pathos to present Russia as a bastion of “traditional values” and moral decency, and at the same time accuse Western countries of moral decay. Such narratives distort and undermine core principles of progressive values such as the rights of women, ethnic and religious minorities, LGBT groups, and others. In reality, Russian disinformers are projecting the ills of their own society onto others. Their actions stem from deep-rooted Russian envy of liberal societies and their progress.
- Russian state and Kremlin-linked disinformation mouthpieces continue their efforts to delegitimize President Volodymyr Zelensky with false narratives. They claim that he is no longer president and should be mobilized into the army. Stories of this kind aim – apart from dealing a blow to Zelensky's authority and Ukraine's stability – thwart the success of the upcoming peace summit in Switzerland and undermine public support for Ukraine. Ukraine's constitution is clear and refutes the Kremlin's claims: elections cannot be held during wartime and the president of Ukraine exercises his powers until the inauguration of a newly elected president.
- In an attempt to undermine the EU, the Kremlin-controlled media is spreading disinformation narratives with fabricated claims such as that “The European Union is increasingly taking away the sovereignty of its member states”. This disinformation aims to mislead the public and divert their attention from the fact that European countries are sovereign and make sovereign decisions about their own domestic, economic, foreign and security policies. The European Union is clear on the issue of national sovereignty: all member states remain sovereign and independent; they have decided to pool some of their sovereignty in areas where it is worth working together.
EUvsDisinfo/ translation: Representation of the European Commission in Bulgaria