Information warfare in the Internet.

Exposing and countering pro-Kremlin disinformation

in the CEEC

Case study: Moldova

Kiev, Ucraine

24 February 2017The project is co-financed by the International Visegrad Fund

Sources of influence and,

frequently, sources of Russian

propaganda in Moldova, are:

- President of Republic of Moldova;

Fake “news” about the pro-European

candidate Maia Sandu:

Sources of influence and,

frequently, sources of Russian

propaganda in Moldova, are:

- President of Republic of Moldova;

- Several mass-media institutions from Russian Federation which are re-transmitted or re-broadcast in Moldova;

- Several new media institutions and socializing networks;

- Communication sources of some political parties and NGOs, supported or financed from Russia;

- Other pro-Russian interest groups.

- Orthodox Church (Metropolitan Church of Moldova, subordinated to the Russian Patriarch);

Analysed online media:

- Actualitati.md (web portal of Socialist party)

- Gagauzinfo.md (web portal from Gagauz autonomy)

- Kp.md (web page of “Komsomolskaia Pravda” Russian

newspaper)

- Ntv.md (web page of NTV Moldova, branch of Russian NTV

channel)

- Pan.md (web page of Russian language “Panorama”

newspaper)

- Sputnik.md (branch of Sputnik international)

Inoculated ideas:

"Europe soon to dissolve“

"Chisinau Government is ruled from outside,

being unable to decide by itself“

"NATO prepares a nuclear war against Russia,

and Moldova could turn into this war",

"Moldova is likely to repeat Ukraine’s fate if the

country’s leadership not re-orients to Russia ",

"Moldova’s adherence to EU is impossible, and

the Association Agreement is against the

country’s interests".

The main manipulation

techniques used in the articles:

- distortion, speculation and misinterpretation of facts,

denaturation of reality (ex.: ”the government of Romania is

no more able to make independent decisions”);

- promotion of the conspiracy theory (“conspiracy of the

West, the US and NATO against Moldova”), the assaults to

country’s sovereignty “as happened in Ukraine and

Romania”;

- artificial opposition of values and holidays of Eastern / Russian with the Western / European;

- presentation of opinions only of those experts who are in

favour of a specific viewpoint regarding the topic discussed;

- use of pejorative language elements to discredit and insult

opponents (ex.: “those who believe in European integration of Moldova are naive and idiots”);

- premeditated categorization of protagonists in ”good” and

”bad”.

False and distorted ideas:

“Only the naive and the idiots agree with the

utopian idea of Moldova’s European

integration”;

“The US and EU Commissioners and

ambassadors promote homosexual

demonstrations”;

“Moldova will be great together with Russia, or

will not be at all!”;

”Moldova is a puppet-country, a pawn in the

game of the US and the EU against Russia”;

“NATO will transform Moldova into a dominion”;

“Russia is consistent in its fight against terrorism,

unlike the US”...

Recent examples:

Thank you

for your attention!