The 2020 presidential election cycle was abnormally long, with chaos, debate about the outcome, and an insurrection before it finally concluded—at least officially—on inauguration day in January 2021. Now just over a year later, the United States mu [...]
Russia Russian propagandists last week reacted to Finland and Sweden’s announced bids to join NATO by threatening military retaliation, accusing the two countries of violating international agreements, and highlighting division within NATO. Russia’s [...]
Since the war in Ukraine started, Chinese diplomats and state media have attempted to portray their country as a neutral third party interested only in restoring peace to Europe. But that effort has been belied by Beijing’s own messaging, which has [...]
China Affairs Analyst Bryce Barros participated in a war game on Meet the Press Reports simulating a Chinese invasion of Taiwan in 2027. The exercise brought together U.S. lawmakers, former Pentagon officials, and China experts to think through how [...]
Russia Russian government-affiliated Twitter accounts marked Victory Day, which celebrates the Soviet Union’s defeat of Nazis in World War II, by launching a patriotic messaging push across social media. Russian diplomats and state media posted more [...]
Russia Russian diplomats and state media last week posted 764 tweets that referenced either “gas” or “rubles” as propagandists detailed Europe’s effort to cope with Moscow’s decision to cut gas supplies for Poland and Bulgaria. Russia made the move [...]
This briefing unpacks the Russia-China disinformation nexus, with a focus on the Global South, as well as the countries' increasing information warfare campaigns, within the context of Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine. [...]
Russia Russian diplomats and state media last week posted more than 800 tweets that referenced “Mariupol” or “Azovstal,” which is the name of a steel plant in the city that has become a holdout for Ukrainian soldiers. Kremlin-linked accounts celebra [...]
Highlights The Russian Embassy in Paris was the author of nine of the top ten tweets by French-language Russian accounts last week. As in previous weeks, its messaging focused on the war in Ukraine and ignored domestic French politics. Russian st [...]
This is the national security podcast crossover of the century! Or at least of the year…ok maybe of Spring 2022! For this special episode of the “War on the Rocks” podcast, Doyle Hodges of “Horns of a Dilemma” hosts Zack Cooper, Melanie Marlowe, and [...]
Russia Russian diplomats and state media last week mentioned “Mariupol” in nearly 500 tweets as they blamed Ukrainian Nazis and their Western backers for war crimes committed in the battered Ukrainian port city. Diplomatic accounts claimed that Ukra [...]
Overview China’s response to the establishment of a Taiwanese Representative Office in the Lithuanian capital Vilnius serves as the most recent example of the perniciousness of economic coercion. Since China’s “Go Out” economic policy was implemente [...]
Highlights The Russian Embassy in France attempted to deny and deflect after evidence of mass killings in Bucha shocked the French public last week. Top tweets by the embassy implied that the killings only surfaced days after Ukrainian troops took o [...]
Russia The push by Russian propagandists last week to distort information on the atrocities in Bucha marked the Kremlin’s most aggressive disinformation campaign of the war. Russian diplomats and state media tweeted the term “Bucha” more than 1,000 [...]
Since the start of the war in Ukraine, Chinese state media and government officials have been increasingly echoing Russian disinformation and undermining Beijing's efforts to promote a neutral position. As Russia faces renewed condemnation for the a [...]
On Sunday, April 10, French voters will choose which two of the 12 presidential candidates will proceed to the second-round runoff. Most polls predict incumbent Emmanuel Macron to come in first, with far-right candidate Marine Le Pen or far-left can [...]
After Russian state outlets were blocked in Europe and restricted around the world on major social media platforms, Chinese state media and government officials have emerged as major amplifiers of pro-Kremlin disinformation on the war in Ukraine. “W [...]
Chinese disinformation spiked after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. China uses similar tactics as during the Covid-19 pandemic, but the scale and intensity are greater. Chinese disinformation conceals Russia’s responsibility for the war and promotes R [...]
Russia Russian diplomats and state media last week spread disinformation to discredit reporting on Russia’s alleged war crimes in Bucha, Ukraine. With images of destruction and death in Bucha coming to light as Russian troops leave the area, Kremlin [...]
Zack Cooper of the German Marshall Fund of the United States says China is probably overestimating the degree to which Europe sees a need to engage “in a productive way” with it, especially when it comes to the Russia-Ukraine war. [...]
During an interview on "Mornings with Maria," Zack Cooper of the Alliance for Securing Democracy argued that the relationship between China and Russia is "as strong as ever." [...]
Russia Last week, “Biden” was the third most used phrase by Russian diplomats and state media on Twitter, as Kremlin-linked accounts attacked the U.S. president for saying that Russian President Vladimir Putin was a “butcher” who “cannot remain in p [...]
Speakers Iris Boyer, Advisory, Institute for Strategic Dialogue France Julien Nocetti, Associate Fellow, French Institute of International Relations Bret Schafer, Senior Fellow and Head of the Information Manipulation Team, Alliance for Securing Dem [...]
Highlights Despite being less than a month away from the first round of the presidential election in France, the elections have received far less coverage in state-backed media outlets than the war in Ukraine and other topics. None of the top 10 key [...]
Russia Russian diplomats and state media last week promoted new evidence to support their conspiracy narrative about the presence of U.S.-funded bioweapon labs in Ukraine, though the number of tweets from Russian propagandists with the term “biologi [...]
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine serves as a reminder for democracies big and small of the stakes of maintaining free and open societies in the face of rising illiberalism, autocracy, and totalitarianism. And despite the seemingly insurmountable odds fo [...]
Russia Russian diplomats and state media last week tweeted the word “biological” nearly 600 times as they advanced their disinformation campaign about U.S.-funded bioweapon facilities in Ukraine. U.S. officials and independent reporters have stated [...]
Background Briefing with Ian Masters · How Far Will Xi Jinping Go in Supporting His Fellow Dictator Putin? We begin with talks between The U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and his Chinese counterpart Yang Jiechi in Rome after leaks from [...]
On February 4, 2022, Russia and China surprised many observers by releasing a joint statement promising a “no limits” friendship, which they described as “superior to political and military alliances of the Cold War era.” Just after the Beijing Olym [...]
The Chinese government’s promotion of Russian disinformation in the middle of the war has ignited concern among Western officials because of China’s powerful diplomatic standing and extensive cyberabilities. Analysts who study disinformation from th [...]
Russia Kremlin-linked messengers last week pushed a series of false claims about Ukraine’s pursuit of biological, chemical, and nuclear weapons. On Sunday, Russia’s Defense Ministry said it had documents that show Kyiv ordered the “emergency destruc [...]
Russia Russian state media celebrated Putin’s recognition on Monday of the Donetsk People’s Republic and the Luhansk People’s Republic, sharing images of fireworks and people waving Russian flags in the regions. Russian President Vladimir Putin just [...]
ASD's Zack Cooper and GMF's Bonnie Glaser talk with Carol Castiel about the evolution of U.S. China relations. They also analyze growing geostrategic rapprochement between Moscow and Beijing. [...]
Russia Russian disinformation on the Kremlin-instigated crisis in Ukraine reached a new level of intensity last week. Months of Russian warnings about a Ukrainian provocation developed into baseless accusations that Ukrainian forces had launched an [...]
As France gears up for a presidential election in April, several foreign officials and state-sponsored media are promoting narratives in France’s public debate that are conducive to their foreign interests, sometimes to the detriment of French democ [...]
Russia Russian officials last week continued to insist that Moscow has no plans to invade Ukraine and made more calls for diplomatic solutions. Russia’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations claimed there is “not even a hint of common sense [...]
Overview Chinese diplomats and state media’s relentless promotion of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics between November 1, 2021 and February 1, 2022 highlights the crucial importance of the games for China. More than a sporting competition, Beijing s [...]
Russia Russian officials and state media last week pushed familiar narratives about Ukraine, claiming NATO is the aggressor and Russia is seeking a peaceful solution. On February 1, President Vladimir Putin spoke for the first time since December ab [...]
Russia Russian diplomats and state-directed media last week continued to claim that Russia does not want to go to war in Ukraine, where the Kremlin has perpetuated a conflict since 2014. “If it depends on Russia, there will be no war,” Foreign Minis [...]
Speakers: Laura Thornton Director & Senior Fellow – Alliance for Securing Democracy (GMF) Sorin Ioniță Analyst & Civic Leader – Expert Forum Stefan Vladisavljev Author - China Observers Moderator: Alexandra Martin Rethink.CEE Fellow – GMF Di [...]