Putin’s Russia: distrust, verify

This editorial first appeared as a Bloomberg View

Surprising no one, the official investigation of the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 over Ukraine in 2014 has concluded that Russia was behind the incident, which killed 298 people. In so doing, the report also highlights one of the most powerful weapons in holding Russia to account: the radical transparency made possible by social media and the Internet.

In addition to forensic reports, interviews and classified intelligence, the team of investigators drew on material surfaced by civilian open-source sleuths into the plane’s downing. The report establishes that, Russian claims to the contrary, the jet was brought down by a missile launcher sent from Russia into Ukraine at the request of pro-Russian rebels.

The threat that this kind of information poses to Russia is exactly why it has worked so hard to control the Internet within its borders, and to aggressively attack its critics and spread disinformation in the wider world through its version of “hybrid warfare.” Russia’s denials are so bald-faced they can take on a surreal quality, as when Russian officials claimed the humanitarian aid convoy spontaneously caught fire.

The best way to counter this kind of dissembling is to promote greater access to the Internet and keep it as free as possible from meddling by autocratic governments. Lies may travel fast in the Information Age, but providing more people with the means to unearth and share accurate information will help ensure that, eventually, the truth will out.

In the meantime, the conclusions of the MH17 report offer a useful lesson about dealing with Russia under Putin: Russia’s version of the truth is whatever serves Russia’s interests.