The Interpreter and the Institute of Modern Russiapresent a special report by Peter Pomerantsev, author of Nothing is True and Everything is Possible: the Surreal Heart of the New Russia, and our editor-in-chief, Michael Weiss, on the Kremlin’s weaponization of information, culture and money to achieve foreign policy goals and undermine opponents.
In recent years, the Kremlin has made much use of information warfare, gaining support in the West from nostalgic communist fellow travelers, the rising far-right and conspiracy theorists. The rebranding today of the international branches of Russia’s state-owned Rossiya Segodnya (Russia Today) news group as Sputnik International speaks of the Kremlin’s intent to influence and manipulate opinion abroad. Russian state-owned or state-controlled media also serve to distribute disinformation, including outright lies, as best exemplified by fabricated reports of the crucifixion of a child by Ukrainian forces.
The Kremlin has also utilized cultural campaigns, exploiting religious sympathies amongst both fellow Orthodox populations, and religious conservatives in Europe and the USA, who align themselves with Putin’s message of traditional values and homophobia.
Russia’s financial resources have meanwhile enabled the Kremlin to co-opt not only European business centers, such as the City of London, but also politicians, such as the former German Chancellor, Gerhard Schröder, who took up position as head of the shareholders’ committee of Gazprom’s Nordstream AG venture shortly after leaving office.
This report examines the means by which the Kremlin uses these weapons, and what effect they are having on international politics as Russia pursues an openly aggressive stance against the West and embarks on war in Ukraine.
This report proposes means by which Western governments and journalists can hope to counteract this tripartite onslaught.
Download the full pdf here.
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