Propaganda disguised as documentaries: Czechia exposes a russian network
Czech investigative journalists from Seznam Zprávy have exposed a European network of the russian propaganda centre «Rybar», whose employees freely travelled within the Schengen Area to film manipulative content.
The propagandists, holding residence permits in EU countries, including Germany, travelled to Prague posing as documentary filmmakers. They attempted to record interviews with local experts and politicians in order to create an illusion of «objectivity» and promote kremlin narratives about the «decline of Europe». After journalists exposed the film crew directly at the meeting site, the propagandists fled.
The producer of the operation from moscow turned out to be boris dvorkin, who is linked to a foundation headed by sergey naryshkin, the head of russia’s foreign intelligence service. «Rybar» planned or had already carried out similar filming in Czechia, Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Serbia, France and other countries.
The investigation clearly demonstrates that despite the sanctions imposed, russian agents of influence manage to find loopholes and continue operating in Europe. This requires increased attention from both the governments and law enforcement agencies of European states and society itself, as the spread of disinformation and hybrid influence by the kremlin pose a direct threat to the national security of EU countries.
It should be recalled that the UK and the EU previously imposed sanctions on the «Rybar» media project, its head, mykhailo zvinchuk, and nine other project participants for interference in elections in various countries and spreading anti-Ukrainian narratives.
