Double, Matryoshka and Portal Combat: special operations against Ukraine conducted by Russia abroad

A Double informational operation orchestrated by Russia has been successfully uncovered in France, thanks to Viginum, a structure with an indirect link to the General Secretariat for Defence and National Security. However, this operation is one of many. Source: Christine Dugoin-Clement, a geopolitical analyst and researcher specialising in influence strategies, cybernetics and AI, on the podcast (un)Safe Country

Details: Therefore, within the Double operation, Russia created clones of mainstream media outlets for approximately one year to spread reputation attacks on Ukraine and attempt to divide European Union member states. 

Another Russian special operation, called Matryoshka, targets fact-checkers: fake accounts reach out to fact-checkers or major mainstream media outlets requesting verification of deliberately fake information. Quote: "And if you refuse, they can fuel their narratives. 'See, this is censorship. They say they want to fact-check but don't do it when we provide information.' On the other hand, you may say, 'Okay, I'm going to check these things'.

However, this disperses fact-checkers' attention greatly. So the Russians benefit in both cases." Details: Another special Russian operation, Portal Combat, was recently uncovered in France.

It's a network of approximately 193 websites working to create a kind of virality for hostile narratives in European and southern countries. Quote: "A network of approximately 500 such websites has been identified, producing narratives in 15 different languages, which can be generated using AI and large language models that increase the speed of narrative production to disseminate content that aligns with the Kremlin's geopolitical goals in the end." In the new episode of the (un)Safe Country podcast, you may listen to the difference in the war unleashed by Russia against Ukraine from wars that occurred previously, the mindset in the war, Russian influence operations, including in France, France's position and attitudes towards the war in Ukraine and what needs to be done to improve democracy protection policies and what other countries can do to protect democracy in the cognitive dimension."

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