Pro-russia media ‘spreading fake news to weaken western Europe’

THE EU has accused pro-kremlin media of spreading disinformation about coronavirus in order to undermine trust in national healthcare systems and Western governments.

The allegations were made in a paper published by the EU’S foreign policy arm – the European External Action Service (EEAS) – that has been seen by The Daily Telegraph.

Citing research from partners at Cardiff University’s Crime and Security Research Institute, the paper said the alleged disinformation campaign represented an “evolution in tactics” since it took place at one remove from the Russian authorities.

“Pro-kremlin media outlets have been prominent in spreading disinformation about the coronavirus, with the aim to aggravate the public health crisis in Western countries, specifically by undermining public trust in national healthcare systems,” it said. Researchers

conceded there was no evidence that the Kremlin was actively “authoring” the disinformation, but were “simply amplifying theories” that had originated elsewhere, such as in China, Iran or with the US far-right.

“This tactic allows them to avoid the accusation of creating disinformation themselves, claiming instead that they are merely reporting what others are saying,” the report added.

The document said that the EEAS’S East Stratcom Task Force had “already collected 80 coronavirus-related disinformation cases” since Jan 22, noting that the Spanish outlet of the Russianbacked RT television station was the 12th most popular source when it came to the coronavirus.

Among the disinformation claims, the document added, was that the virus was a biological weapon deployed by China, the US or the UK; had been caused by migrants and was “registered as a patent by the British Crown”.

It said pro-kremlin outlets framed the outbreak’s control as an East v West narrative. “Pro-kremlin disinformation messages advance a narrative that coronavirus is a human creation, weaponised by the West,” the report said.

“Messages targeting Italy aim to exacerbate fears over the ability of national and international authorities to manage the outbreak, for example, ‘EU ability to effectively deal with the virus is doubtful’; ‘Italian doctors will select who lives or dies, as hospitals are not able to save all patients’.

“Messages in Spanish, targeting Europe and Latin America, advance apocalyptic stories, blame capitalists for trying to benefit from the virus, and emphasise how well Russia and Vladimir Putin [the Russian president] are dealing with the outbreak.”

The Kremlin vehemently denied that Russia had sought to sow panic about the spread of the virus in Europe and dismissed the reports as “baseless accusation” by “Russia haters”.

A spokesman for the EEAS defended the report and warned that spreading disinformation was “playing with people’s lives”.

“There is a lot of misinformation circulating around. Double check, triple check,” the spokesman said.