Intense interest by diplomats and state media underscores the significance of Russia’s intervention.
Russian propaganda accounts on Twitter went into overdrive this month as troops from a Russian-led regional security organization were dispatched to protect critical infrastructure in Kazakhstan amid anti-government protests that rocked the country, according to an analysis shared with Foreign Policy by researchers at the Alliance for Securing Democracy at the German Marshall Fund of the United States, a Washington-based think tank.
During a six-day period in early January, accounts run by Russian diplomats and state media abroad tweeted about Kazakhstan 3,210 times, amplifying allegations that foreign interference had fueled the protests and portraying Russian troops as restoring order and stability in the Central Asian nation.
