What Russia said to Ukrainians during the European elections

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Russian propaganda actively spread a lot of false information about the EU and European leadership to undermine the morale of Ukrainians, but failed to influence their pro-European will.

While Europe is preparing to counter Russian disinformation during the EU elections in June, Russia is using this time to sow more suspicion and distrust of European countries among Ukrainians.

Fact-checking organizations in Ukraine have recently noticed a significant increase in the amount of false information about the EU, the European Parliament elections and European national elections. The main purpose of this false information is to create a negative image of the EU and to demoralize Ukrainians, letting them know that Europe will no longer give them help and support.

For example, the Kremlin media has been actively Spreading narratives European elections will lead to a situation “similar to the collapse of the Soviet Union.”

Russian media wrote that no matter which party’s candidates are elected to the European Parliament, the new balance of power will lead to “the collapse of the European Union, at least because it has long ceased to be a club of interests.”

“In absolute terms, any election held in a country that Russia is interested in is a target for Russian attack. If you watch Russian television, it’s easy to see who the Kremlin considers Russia’s friends and enemies.” explain Ruslan Deynichenko, co-founder and executive director of the StopFake project.

For example, in the Ukrainian information space, social media spreads False news Emmanuel Macron’s party is offering 100 euros to every French citizen who votes for it in the parliamentary elections, or to EU politicians “Infected by the fascist virus” On the eve of the election, the EU is “prepared to follow in Hitler’s footsteps”.

Ukrainian social media was also flooded with reports about protests in various European countries, emphasizing that protesters were violently dispersed. Russian Telegram channels stressed that the EU was undemocratic, did not respect people’s rights, and implemented censorship.

Russia also spreads disinformation aimed at worsening Ukraine’s relations with European countries, claiming that all Europe needs from Ukraine is its resources. For example, a video showed a German farmer assessing the quality of Ukraine’s soil and commenting that “this is exactly why Ukraine is going to war.”

Another story Start to show up more actively In Ukraine’s relations with Europe, Europeans want Ukraine to continue the war, while Ukrainians want peace. This lie includes statements against those political forces that advocate continued support for Ukraine.

Such disinformation is spread on popular Telegram channels, bots in popular discussions, and in Russian and pro-Russian media, with the aim of causing Ukrainians to lose trust in Europe.

However, the Russians did not succeed, as Ukrainians still mainly supported Europe, which has always comfirmed Through opinion polls.

Therefore, according to July Survey Two-thirds of Ukrainians consider EU membership to be as important as NATO membership, according to a survey published by the European Council on Foreign Relations. The survey also showed that Ukrainians have a more favorable view of the EU’s role in the war than EU citizens.

The Ilkor Kucherev Foundation for Democratic Initiatives study on Ukrainians’ attitudes towards the EU also famous Most people associate the EU with positive aspects of Ukraine that have been made difficult by the war: Freedom to travel, study and work within the EU (49%), quality of life for future generations (44%), economic prosperity (39%), social security (35%), democracy (34%) and peace (33%).

There is therefore no evidence that Russia’s attempts to worsen Ukrainians’ views of European countries have been successful.

Ukrainian authorities are also convinced that despite all of Russia’s propaganda efforts, its agenda in Europe will not succeed.

“There is no alternative but to support victory in Ukraine and ensure the defeat of Russian aggression. Otherwise, the national security of our partners will be at risk. This applies to Europe, the United States and the rest of the world,” emphasize Dmytro Kuleba, Ukraine’s foreign minister, July.

Olha Yurkova, co-founder of StopFake fact-checking project explain “If Russia (pro-Russian political forces opposing support for Ukraine) holds a majority of seats in the European Parliament, it can be considered a win. Why? To make it easier to achieve their goals, which include undermining support for Ukraine, destabilizing Europe and weakening the European Union.”

“Unfortunately, we are seeing a strengthening of the position of these political forces, but they are not in the majority,” she said.

This article is part of the FREIHEIT Media Project in Europe’s Neighborhoods, funded by the European Media and Information Fund (EMIF).

(By Alexandra Brzozovsky/Editing by Zoran Radosavljevic)