Hybrid warfare in Europe: Russia enlists religious groups, Ukrainian expert warns
Russia continues to actively promote its propaganda and disinformation aimed at European audiences, with religious organizations also involved in hybrid influence operations, according to an expert.
This view was expressed in an exclusive comment to Ukrinform by Rena Marutian, Director of the Institute for National Resilience and Security, who presented a study on Russian propaganda and disinformation targeting audiences in several European countries in Brussels on Tuesday.
“We came to the forum ‘Resilient Europe: Countering Russian Propaganda and Disinformation.’ The European Economic and Social Committee invited Ukrainian experts to share their experience in countering Russian propaganda and disinformation,” Marutian said.
She noted that at the request of Members of the European Parliament, experts from the Institute analyzed the information space of four EU countries – France, Spain, Belgium, and Hungary – and presented a corresponding report at the Brussels forum, which, according to Marutian, was met with great interest.
“We showed which narratives are the most destructive, which Russian organizations are shaping these narratives, and which are acting most aggressively in the information space,” the expert said.
Among the most aggressive Russian organizations, she highlighted Rossotrudnichestvo and the Russian Orthodox Church.
Marutian recalled that the Russian Orthodox Church seeks to build churches near critical and military infrastructure facilities in European countries.
“These may include military units, bridges, airports, and nuclear fuel production plants,” she emphasized, adding that land for such purposes is often purchased or leased by the state-owned corporation Rosatom, underscoring the link between a religious organization and Russia’s military-industrial complex.
“Rossotrudnichestvo, in my view, is one of Russia’s strongest soft-power tools. Just a few months ago, the Russian House opened in Brussels. Not to mention how strongly they are represented in countries such as France, Portugal, and others,” the Institute’s director said.
She explained that Ukrainian experts do not issue recommendations to their European colleagues, but instead offer them the opportunity to familiarize themselves with Ukraine’s own experience.
At the same time, Marutian said that the EU has already proposed conducting further studies.
Among the most actively promoted harmful narratives targeting European audiences, she highlighted the economic narrative, which claims that support for Ukraine in the war is allegedly destroying the EU economy, as well as efforts to incite interethnic and interfaith conflicts within Europe.
“For example, we found that in France, with the help of Russian funding, far-right forces are organizing antisemitic actions and attacking synagogues. All of this undermines, so to speak, the internal political security of the European Union,” Marutian stressed.
Another destructive narrative, in her view, is the claim that “the EU is not ready for war, the EU is weak, and therefore there is no point in resisting.”
This is compounded by messaging that in the event of a military conflict, NATO would not come to Europe’s defense.
As reported by Ukrinform, Vadym Skibitskyi, Deputy Head of Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence, said in a blitz interview that Russia has intensified hybrid measures on the “European front.”