- The goal of Russian agents is to stir up emotions and create fear of an uncertain future – write Spiegel journalists.
- As the German weekly wrote, in 2022 the Russian services came to the conclusion that the tactics used previously were ineffective, and that the downplaying of the war as a “special operation” did not please anyone.
- Russians believe that the purpose of propaganda should not be to appeal to the common sense of the recipients and try to persuade them to accept Russian arguments. Future campaigns should affect the psychology and emotions of ordinary people, that is, by 70-80 percent. Society
- The document revealed contains specific proposals – Russia should drive a wedge between Ukraine and its supporting countries in order to create divisions in Western societies.
- You can find more of these articles on the Onet home page.
The editorial board of the German weekly magazine and investigative portal “The Insider”, thanks to leaks from the Russian foreign intelligence service SWR, obtained documents outlining the Kremlin’s new strategy in the information war against the West.
The goal of Russian agents is to stir up emotions and create fear of an uncertain future – write Spiegel journalists in the latest issue of the weekly magazine. The campaign is directed, among other things, against Germany.
The New Doctrine of Misinformation
As the German weekly wrote, in 2022 the Russian services came to the conclusion that the tactics used previously were ineffective, and that the downplaying of the war as a “special operation” did not please anyone.
On the initiative of Alexei Pushkov, as Spiegel puts it, “an influential politician dealing with foreign policy,” a “crisis meeting” was held in May 2022 in order to start working on a new strategy. The basis for the discussion was the document “Propaganda.doc” prepared by Mikhail Kolesov, head of the Foreign Intelligence Service since 2001, who had 40 agents and also had an FSB identity card.
Kolesov’s document became the starting point for the development of the doctrine of disinformation operations carried out by Russian agencies in the West. Its final version was created between January and May 2023 and is officially called “Project SWR”, with the letter “o” in the shape of a globe.
stir up emotions, spread fear
The starting point was a radical criticism of previous actions, which, according to the authors, ended in complete failure. Actions carried out through propaganda outlets such as Sputnik or RT also turned out to be ineffective.
The goal of propaganda should not be to appeal to the common sense of the recipients and try to persuade them to accept Russian arguments. Future campaigns should affect the psychology and emotions of ordinary people, that is, 70-80 percent of society. Kolesov believes that the goal is to incite fear.
envy towards ukrainians
The document contains specific proposals – Russia should drive a wedge between Ukraine and the countries supporting it in order to create divisions in Western societies. The authors recommend arousing envy towards refugees from Ukraine who benefit from the benefits of social systems. This is a “very effective” topic for cyberwarfare, write the authors of the doctrine.
Paid protesters
The Kremlin strategists are not limited to the war on the Internet. The document also provides for organizing mass protests in EU countries. The optimal number of protesters is 100 people, and participants will receive a reward of 100 euros per person. Photos and recordings of the protests should then be used online, the document reads.
The German authorities do not intend to passively monitor the actions of the Russian services. A team has been set up at the Interior Ministry in Berlin to combat “information manipulation” from abroad. The employees of this unit discovered an action aimed at sparking a discussion on social media that the German government was helping the Ukrainians at the expense of its own citizens. The Russians are a “demanding adversary,” but they also make mistakes, an employee of the team at the Interior Ministry told SPIEGEL. The Russians wanted to hide the fact that they were behind this action at all costs, but the flow of information stopped on… Russian public holidays.
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