No reasonable person today can deny that aggressive Russian policy is a threat to all of Europe. Putin’s regime fights not only with weapons but also with lies and manipulation. Russia uses these tactics even against European countries it is not at war with, trying to weaken them from the inside. Unsurprisingly, the Czech Republic is one of its targets.
This is nothing new. The Kremlin was spreading lies already during the times of Tsarist Russia, and the Soviet Union continued to use the same methods throughout its existence.
New Times, New Lies
Times have changed, and so have the ways Russia spreads its lies. Through platforms like META and Telegram, Russia spreads disinformation, divides our societies, and undermines trust in democracy. It also uses modern psychological operations against us.
These have become a key tool in hybrid warfare. They rely on the power of digital media, data manipulation algorithms, and mass disinformation campaigns. The same lies are repeated over and over until people start believing them. Fake news, memes, emotional videos, and even deepfakes are used to influence how people think and feel.
Cognitive Warfare – A Battle for People’s Minds
This type of warfare shows itself in different ways, for example, by interfering in elections, like in the U.S. In 2014, after the annexation of Crimea, Russia began flooding social media with messages aiming to harm Ukraine’s image.
They spread lies about the genocide of Russian-speaking people and staged fake testimonies from captured Ukrainian soldiers. After the full-scale invasion in 2022, Russian propaganda tried to turn Europeans against Ukrainian refugees, claiming they were getting too many benefits or committing crimes.
It is also known that the Kremlin supports extremist groups (such as France’s National Rally or Germany’s AfD), separatist movements (like in Catalonia), and even campaigns like Brexit. Russia is willing to use any person or tool that can destabilize Europe.
The effects of these operations include deepening political and social crises, weakening state institutions, encouraging separatist movements, and increasing extremism and radicalism among the population.
All of this leads to long-term destabilization and makes societies more vulnerable to external manipulation. The methods have changed, but the goal remains the same: to create confusion, insecurity, and destroy trust in democracy. And it’s not just about social media.
Russia’s Focus Extends Beyond Europe
With so-called “humanitarian disinformation,” Russia targets people in Africa and Latin America. It uses fake humanitarian diplomacy and spreads stories claiming that only Russia can “save the world” from Western imperialism, and that Western humanitarian missions are just covers for espionage and colonialism.
These psychological operations are mainly carried out through RT, Sputnik, Telegram, and networks of pro-Russian bloggers.
What Will Social Media Companies Do?
If tech companies don’t consistently enforce their own rules, they are directly helping Putin’s hybrid war against Europe. META, for example, does not enforce its rules strictly enough, allowing fake and anonymous accounts to spread disinformation and manipulate public debate.
Stricter rule enforcement across the EU would help create a more transparent and responsible online environment and support the EU’s broader efforts to fight disinformation.
That’s why, together with other members of the European Democracy Shield (EUDS) committee, we sent a letter to European Commission Vice-President Henna Virkkunen, urging serious action against this threat.
The Fight for Truth
But defending against hostile lies requires even more action. Every European country should develop media literacy and critical thinking among its citizens, starting already at a young age, and also teach people to become immune to lies spread online.
Because digital and information security go beyond national borders, international cooperation is also necessary. We need to work together to develop systems that can quickly identify threats and neutralize them. Clear strategies must be in place for recognizing and countering information and psychological threats.
This is a fight for the truth. If we do nothing, people will lose trust in information, the media, and democracy itself. We must always remember: if we fail to act, we leave the field wide open for Russian propaganda — and we definitely don’t want that.
