Russia’s attempts to sell false rumors to the West about the invasion of Ukraine have failed, say a Canadian general and senior NATO and European officials. At a security conference in Ottawa, they said that Kremlin disinformation campaigns were being successfully thwarted and were being addressed in both Europe and North America. However, they warn that Russian President Vladimir Putin is fueling dissent in Africa and the developing world by blaming Western sanctions for food shortages stemming from the Russian invasion and blockade of Ukrainian ports. Putin’s strategy seeks to increase Russia’s sphere of influence not only in Ukraine but also in Africa and the developing world by sowing discord and “equipping everything” including food, as was heard at the conference. Lt. Gen. Giovanni Magnone, the Deputy Director-General of the EU Military Staff, said that in addition to the four riders of the revelation – conquest, war, famine and death – there was a fifth rider in this conflict: misinformation. “How many countries will fall on Russia without firing a single shot at Africa and Asia?” he asked, adding that the misinformation was difficult to deal with. At the conference it was heard that in Russia the majority believes in Putin’s rotation on his action in Ukraine, but that the same narratives do not penetrate the West. Outside Russia, the EU, Canada, NATO and Ukraine are successfully debunking the Kremlin’s false narratives, including Western-led food shortages, the conference said. “The Russians are so obsessed with propaganda that they will never listen to us,” Manione warned. The Ottawa European Security and Defense Symposium was attended by Canadian military leaders and defense officials, as well as senior officials from NATO, the EU and Ukraine, and European ambassadors to Canada. Jay Janzen, communications director for NATO Allied Operations, said Russia had experienced a “catastrophic failure” from the invasion of Ukraine, including misinformation campaigns, and was not “10 feet tall”. Maj. Gen. Michael Wright, commander of the Canadian Armed Forces Intelligence Service, said the United Kingdom, the United States and Canada had successfully dealt with Russian misinformation since the beginning of the war. Earlier, the United Kingdom and the United States declassified information to show what Russia’s real intentions were. Canada has also taken steps to crack down on false narratives from the Kremlin. Charles Fries, the EU’s deputy secretary-general for a common security and defense policy, said the EU was waging a “huge battle of narratives” and repelling Russian propaganda, including “completely untrue” claims by the Kremlin that food shortages came from food. . He said the invasion was now “much bigger than a European war” and that Russia was “now using food as a weapon and using food security concerns as a form of blackmail to put pressure on poor countries and some African countries.” EU and allied sanctions had never targeted the world’s food supplies, or even fertilizer exports from Russia, and the Russian allegations were untrue, he said. Putin’s belief that the invasion would divide the EU and undermine its resolve failed. “Putin wants to divide us, and he has done just the opposite,” Fries said. “So it is a complete failure.” Yegor Chernev, a Ukrainian lawmaker and head of the Ukrainian delegation to NATO, warned that “the Russians will continue their false narratives, their false news” and will try to spread these lies to Canada and Europe. He also said that the allies must be ready to face the Russian “blackmail” with gas and oil. This Canadian Press report was first published on June 21, 2022.
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