Poland urges EU to combat Russian disinformation in US, Reuters reports.

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Poland is urging the European Union to fight Russian disinformation campaigns in the United States by stressing the importance of the bloc's alliance with Washington, Reuters reported on July 20. Experts have warned that Russian propaganda efforts in the U.S. are intensifying ahead of the 2024 presidential election. Warsaw will present a paper at a meeting of E.U. foreign ministers on July 22 calling for the E.U. to launch its own campaign countering Russian disinformation.

"At this critical moment in history, it is imperative that we collectively take swift and robust action to strengthen the transatlantic relations through strategic communication about the E.U. in the U.S.," the paper reportedly says. Poland warned that Russia's propaganda aims to create tensions between the U.S. and the E.U., and said that it is critical for the E.U. to counter this messaging with American audiences. "This means scaling up our de-bunking and, even more importantly, pre-bunking of Russian disinformation and launching campaigns which set the record straight about where Europe stands today and about the benefits of diplomacy, collective security and open society," the paper says.

According to the paper, online accounts associated with the Kremlin are disseminating narratives that catastrophize the immigration situation at the U.S.-Mexico border and portray immigrants as criminals in a bit to sway voters ahead of the November elections. Former U.S. President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has made immigration policy a focal point of his reelection campaign.

Congressional Republicans also used concerns over border security to obstruct U.S. military aid to Ukraine for months, ultimately demanding harsh anti-immigration concessions before agreeing to the bill. U.S. officials have said that Russia engaged in a widespread campaign of digital disinformation and hacking in the past two presidential elections, particularly in 2016. "We should expect much more is to come, as eroding support for Ukraine remains Russia's top priority," Poland's paper says.

Poland said the E.U. should appeal to younger American audiences and emphasize the value "our decades-long partnership has brought to the U.S. economy."  

The E.U. should also make the U.S. public more aware of the scale of European aid to Ukraine "and how that effort helps save Ukrainian lives."

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