Security, trust in the state, welfare, identity, and safety are the paramount subjects through which Russian propaganda manipulates Moldovans, jeopardizing the process of European integration. The data is presented in a report published by the Center for Strategic Communication and Counteracting Disinformation.
According to the document, topics related to security have been used to trigger anxieties related to war, NATO, neutrality, Ukraine, the Transnistrian region, sovereignty, and external control, writes realitatea.md.
“In the malignant infrastructure, security is presented not as a domain for strengthening the state’s capacity, but as a danger produced by proximity to the West. These messages aim to block rational debate about security. Any external cooperation, defense reform, or discussion about resilience is reinterpreted as preparation for war, loss of neutrality, or subordination to the West,” the report states.
Another topic that puts pressure on public opinion relates to security. The specialists of the Center note that for this purpose, criticisms of the Police are used, accusations regarding repression against citizens, but also the presentation of perceptions that the state is unable to protect society from crime. “Malicious actors have attacked the elections, justice, the press, reforms, institutions, administrative capacity and the external image of the Republic of Moldova. The goal is to degrade public trust in the state as a legitimate institution. (…) Identity, well-being, security and public order are entry points, but the final effect sought is the erosion of the state’s legitimacy and trust in the strategic direction of the Republic of Moldova. The attacks on the elections, justice, press, reforms and the external image are the ones that connect the specific themes into a wider framework of delegitimization”, the document further states.
European integration does not only appear as a separate theme, but as a cross-cutting thread in almost all topics addressed. According to the analysis, malign actors associate the process of EU accession with the loss of sovereignty, external control over the country, economic costs, abandonment of traditional markets, imposed reforms, attacks on identity and the free exercise of religion.
“This topic is important because it shows that the goal is not just to attack specific policies, but to affect the internal and external consensus on the strategic direction of the Republic of Moldova,” emphasize the specialists from the Center for Combating Disinformation.
The document also points out that European integration is attacked not only through direct anti-EU messages. In this regard, propaganda uses narratives that undermine trust in the state, in institutions, in reforms, in security, and in the ability of the Republic of Moldova to act as a credible partner.