Russia intensified its disinformation campaign ahead of the German…

Russia intensified its disinformation campaign ahead of the German state parliament elections — Reuters.

Consensus

• Russia is running a disinformation campaign targeting Germany's state parliamentary elections.
• The campaign uses fake videos and posts on social media with logos of reputable media outlets like BBC and ARD to appear credible.
• The goal is to discredit major German political parties, including CDU, SPD, Greens, and FDP.
• The campaign is being conducted using a network known as 'Matryoshka', created by Russia for foreign audiences.
• German authorities are monitoring the campaign and have identified it as a serious threat.
• Some of the fake videos have been removed by the platform X.

Points of divergence

• The campaign is specifically aimed at undermining the CDU, its coalition partner SPD, the Greens, and FDP, and is directed against political rivals of the AfD. — tg_echoonline_news
• The fake videos specifically discredit all parties except the far-right AfD and left-populist WASG. — tg_dwglavnoe
• The disinformation campaign is primarily in English and has limited online reach but remains a serious threat. — tg_echoonline_news
• Hundreds of fake videos have been distributed, many containing claims about children in East Germany being poisoned in schools. — tg_dwglavnoe

Coverage (2 sources)

• Russia Intensified Disinformation Campaign Ahead of German Land Parliament Elections — Reuters — ЭХО / Новости
• Russia spreads fake videos to influence German elections - dpa — DW Главное

Key entities

• Germany
• Russia
• Reuters
• Sarawagenknecht Union
• Berlin
• Alternative for Germany
• Saxony-Anhalt
• AdG
• Reuter
• Alternative for Germany (AfD)